Posted on 09/21/2026 9:25:12 AM PDT by V_TWIN
A Florida couple were hit by lightning while walking hand in hand – and they hailed a quick-thinking group of good Samaritans who helped save their lives.
Aaron Walenga, 48, and his wife of 17 years, Clare Walenga, had just dropped their kids off at church and were walking along the West Orange Trail in central Florida when they were struck by the bolt on Sept. 2, WHSV reported.
CPR was given to Clare Walenga, 43, after she was struck, while Aaron was hospitalized, but both survived the near-death experience thanks to the actions of four pals on their weekly running club.
But there have been a string of lightning-related fatalities in recent months.
Earlier this month Matthew Jenkins, 20, died after being struck by lightning – days after moving to Florida to attend the Disney College Program.
Utah dad Steve Matheson was struck helping some Florida boaters that had gotten into difficulty while at sea – before he died of his injuries.
Last month, Florida mom Kenya Glasgow, 31, and her daughter, Kennedi, 2, were struck by lightning in front of their husband and dad.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
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I keep telling you people it ain't all boat drinks and sunsets here.
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Ping!
Was it wet and raining or a strike out of the blue ?
I’ve come close several times over the years........
I still operate under the belief that if you can stay dry and its not raining yet, you are rather safe.
Subtle details like this can help others avoid a similar fate. I will sit on an outside porch, stay dry and don’t expect to be hit.
“Aaron and Clare Walenga were struck by the lightning bolt – even though they didn’t hear any signs that a storm was brewing.”
From AI:
Lightning Distance Facts
“The 10-Mile Rule: Lightning frequently strikes outside of heavy rain areas, reaching distances of 10 miles or more.”
“... didn’t hear any signs ...”
Trail might have been wet, dew. That can attract a discharge.
Good for them.
It rains and thunders daily here. Getting really tired of it. People should not be out in this weather. Let alone walking?
I have to keep my ham radios disconnected from their antennas. I just put up a 30’ tall HF antenna.
Once lightning hit the telephone pole in my backyard. It fried everything connected to cable and power. Lost a dvr, powered subwoofer, pc etc. Now I have every sensitive device on a ups.
It is not that uncommon for people to get hit by lightning in Florida in clear skies.
Earlier this year a guy in my town got struck while he was mowing his lawn. Not exactly something you normally do in the rain....fortunately he survived as well.
“”Subtle details like this can help others avoid a similar fate. I will sit on an outside porch, stay dry and don’t expect to be hit.””
***
I don’t even do that any more. I go inside. Why? Because the last time I sat on a porch during a storm was when I was about nine, sitting there on a nice, covered and screened in side porch... enjoying the sounds and effects of the storm safely.
Until.... lightning struck a transformer right beside the house. It felt like it was only 2-3 feet away from me. I quite literally defied gravity along with the cat in my lap, as we both went “up in the air” a foot or two...lol. Haven’t done porch sitting in a storm since.
Good thing he wasn’t out in the open, trying to finish his Golf Game. Some of those players are laser-focused to complete their 18 holes, no matter what!
In Florida it doesn’t even need to be raining- 2 weeks ago I saw lightining hit about a mile from me on only a semi-cloudy day. Not raining at all.
That’s sweet, still walking hand in hand, after 17 yrs of marriage.
I disconnect my whole house from the utility power when a strong storm is imminent. Run on solar and batteries just fine.
So much lightning enters through wires coming into your house.
They must be love struck with each other.
Maybe next time they’ll go to church, too.
“Now I have every sensitive device on a ups.”
The UPS can act as the savior and blow up rather than the computers on it.
"Sparked by a major thunderstorm complex rumbling over the Great Plains, a single megaflash lightning bolt captured by NOAA’s GOES-16 satellite was recently certified by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) as the world’s longest flash on record. The horizontal distance of the bolt stretched 515 miles (829 km) from eastern Texas to near Kansas City, Mo., when it flashed across the sky on October 22, 2017. "
This particular flash was not identified in the original 2017 analysis of the thunderstorm, but was discovered through a recent re-examination. It is nearly 38 miles (61 km) longer than the previous record-setting flash that lit up the southern U.S. on April 29, 2020, which was also verified through GOES-16 satellite imagery.
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