One woman is dead and two other people are injured after a lightning bolt touched down outside the Hyatt Place in Daytona Beach Friday afternoon.

  • Lifeguards pulled two injured out of the water after strike
  • Rescue crews cleared the water 10 minutes before strike
  • 1st lightning strike fatality in Daytona Beach this year

Tammy Holmes and her friend, Anna Nikorak, were walking along the Daytona Beach shore when literally out of the blue, lightning touched down.

“Our backs were to the storm and everything this direction was bright blue, and behind us it wasn’t much more cloudy than it is today,” said Holmes, recounting the moments right before the lightning touched down.
 
“The boom that hit was so loud that it busted one of my ear drums. Water was pouring out of my ear, and it picked us up off our feet and threw us on to the sand,” said Holmes.
 
She then looked up to find her friend and two others injured.
 
“Anna’s knees were bloody, she was quite upset and crying," said Holmes, "and I turned to my left and saw another young couple face down in the water.”
 
Lifeguards then pulled Janika Gardner, 33, and her boyfriend, Russell Scott, 41, from the water.

The couple had only been standing in ankle deep water when they were struck by the bolt. Gardner succumbed to her injuries and died at the hospital Friday night.
 
Officials say ocean rescue crews had issued “Red Light Conditions” and cleared the water 10 minutes before the lightning struck.
 
“It did start to look like it was getting nicer out again," said Daytona Beach Lifeguard Captain Tammy Marris, "but then the lightning just kind of came out of nowhere.”
 
Nikorak has been released from the hospital after being treated for minor injuries. Scott is expected to make a full recovery.

According to Daytona Beach Lifeguards, this was the first lightning strike fatality for the area so far this year. They urge people to stay away from the water when red light conditions are put in place.
 
Despite the experience, Holmes says this won’t stop her and her friend from coming back to the beach in the future.
 
"[Nikorak] has already called me and said 'let's come back down here for the walk again and get right back on the horse,'" said Holmes. "Because otherwise you’d be too afraid to come back to the beach again, it was that strong.“