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One Dead After 5 People Struck By Lightning In Poughkeepsie
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Aug 13, 2016
Modified Jul 24, 2017
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By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Aug 13, 2016
Modified Jul 24, 2017
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One person is dead and four are injured following a frightening lightning strike in Poughkeepsie yesterday afternoon.
The strike hit at around 4:06 p.m. at Mansion Square Park. Three men in their 40s and 50s were sitting on a bench on the north side of the park when a tree by the bench was struck, sending lightning down the tree onto the ground. All three were unresponsive after the strike. One man died early this morning at Vassar Brothers Medical Center—two others are in critical condition in the hospital’s intensive care unit. Two other victims who were standing nearby the bench when they were struck were treated at MidHudson Regional Hospital for less severe injuries.
"There was actually smoke coming off one the guys, actually, you know, one of the guys that was laid out," witness Sam Hail told CBS. "He was alive, though, but like you could see he was smoking. His pants; his clothes were smoking."
It is incredibly rare to be struck by lightning, and there have only been 26 lightning deaths nationwide so far this year. On Wednesday, two people were struck and killed at a cemetery in Batavia, N.Y.
Tagged
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poughkeepsie
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Rebecca Fishbein
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