Five Homes Struck By Lightning Amidst Island Storm

The storm may have come and gone in a flash, but the island was greeted with heavy rain and lightning to kick off the long holiday weekend Saturday morning. The Nantucket Fire Department responded to 11 calls, including up to five lightning strikes between 10:40-11:40 a.m.

"That (storm) was crazy," Deputy Fire Chief Sean Mitchell said. "We had two confirmed lightning strikes during that time and possibly up to five homes that were struck by lightning."

The NFD responded to an Appleton Road residence at approximately 10:48 a.m. for the report of a lightning strike and potential house fire. Upon arriving, all the residents of the home had safely evacuated themselves. Mitchell said the strike caused insulation in the attic to burn, which caused a significant amount of smoke. NFD was able to put the fire out quickly once they arrived.

"Firefighters got there and made their way up into the attic to make sure the fire was out, removed the insulation, and cut a ventilation hole in the wall on the left side of the house to ventilate smoke," Mitchell said.

The department responded with an ambulance, engine, and a tanker. They were on the scene for approximately an hour.

The department then raced out to Cliff Road for a similar call, where a lightning strike caused some damage to an attic.

"Nobody was injured and we didn't transport anyone to the hospital, so that is certainly a good thing," Mitchell said. He added that electrical inspector George Hull also responded to both scenes.