Lightning strikes boat, sparking blaze at marina on South Carolina lake, officials say
A boat was engulfed in flames minutes after it was struck by lightning on a lake in upstate South Carolina over the weekend, multiple outlets report.
Boaters David and Stephanie Hazelhurst captured video as flames overtook the boat at Portman Marina in Anderson on Saturday, according to WSPA. The couple was on Lake Hartwell at the time and tried securing the burning vessel before fire crews arrived, video shows.
McClatchy News reached out to the Anderson County Fire Department on Monday and is awaiting a response.
Fire officials responded to the scene and said no one was on board the boat when lightning hit it, WYFF reported. Graham Dickerson said he was on a boat docked nearby when he heard a “really loud crack and a flash.”
“I actually had my hand on a stay inside the boat and ... I felt a tingle where I was touching,” Dickerson told the news station. “We looked around and everything was fine. And then 10 minutes later, my wife goes, ‘you smell something?’ ... So I stuck my head out and saw smoke billowing out of the sailboat three boats down.”
No one was injured, WHNS reported, citing county fire officials.
Anderson is about 30 miles southwest of Greenville.
This story was originally published August 16, 2021 at 1:27 PM with the headline "Lightning strikes boat, sparking blaze at marina on South Carolina lake, officials say."