LAFAYETTE, La. — Lightning caused damage to two separate homes in Lafayette during Wednesday afternoon's storms, plus other emergency incidents.
Lafayette Fire Department responded to multiple calls during the storms, including two house fires, a tree falling on a house, two fire alarm activations and two burnt smell investigations.
The house fires were in the 100 block of Seville Boulevard and the 300 block of Creedwood Drive. Both were the result of lightning strikes. According to LFD, each house was left with minor fire damage. No one was home during the time of the lightning strikes.
At the home on Seville Boulevard, lightning struck a tree in the backyard, traveled through a medium and ignited the wood structure members near a gas tankless water heater.
At the home on Creekwood Drive, lightning struck the house and ignited the wood framing in the attic space over the garage. The damage was contained within the garage area.
The storms also caused a tree to fall on a home on Pearl Street. When firefighters arrived, they were notified that the occupant's mother was trapped inside the house. Crews were able to rescue the mother and her dog. No injuries were reported in this incident. For another look at the damage caused, see KATC's coverage of it here.
In addition to the damaged homes, LFD responded to two fire alarm activations and two burnt smell investigations. According to LFD, nothing was found with any of these calls.
