WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. — A Central Florida mother killed by a lightning strike near an elementary school has been identified as the wife of an Orlando Sanford Airport police officer.

The Airport Police Department held a press conference Friday afternoon, expressing their condolences for fellow Officer Andrew Tedesco who lost his wife, Nicole Tedesco, Thursday afternoon.

Officials say Andrew’s 10-year-old daughter Ava and their dog were also injured in the strike, but are expected to make a full recovery.

The strike was reported at about 2:20 p.m. in the 1300 block of Park Villa Place in Winter Springs.

Officials say Nicole Tedesco, 42, got caught in a storm while waiting with Ava and their dog, Vito, for her 9-year-old daughter, Gia, to get out of school.

“It appears that lightning hit a nearby tree, energizing the area and striking the victims,” the Winter Springs Police Department said in a statement.

“Sadly, the mother passed away from the injuries,” the statement continued. “The child and K9 have been seen by medical professionals and are doing fine.”

Officials announced that a GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family in the wake of Tedesco's death. 

Sanford Airport Authority Police Chief Tom Fuehrer said Andrew's family is the center of his world.

"Always, always talking about his kids and his wife and his family and what they’re doing," he said. "Very much a loving father and husband.”

“While he is obviously devastated by his loss, he is doing remarkably well as he focuses on his attention on caring for his daughters Ava and Gia,” Fuehrer added.

He said he was there when Andrew had to tell Ava the news about her mother.

“It’s amazing how children are so resilient," Fuehrer said. "I was there when her dad told her that her mom was gone, very very sad but took it very well.

"I know she remembered being there with her mother and the next thing she remembered was being in the back of an ambulance.”

Vanessa Torres says she was there picking her daughter up from school when the lightning struck.

“I just had no idea what was happening yet,” she said. “There was lightning and thunder all on top of us.”

When she started seeing first responders rush by her, Torres said she knew something bad had happened.

“It was scary,” she said. “At that point, all the moms are calling each other.”

Winter Springs Police Capt. Doug Seely said bystanders immediately called 911 and tried to help Tedesco and her daughter after the lightning hit. 

“Our Winter Springs residents are a very tight-knit community,” he said. “(When they) realized what was going on and provided service and started calling for assistance.”

Torres said the incident has affected the entire community.

“When it affects somebody, it affects us all,” she said. “So it’s, it’s been hard. It’s been a hard afternoon.”

Officials also say an 18-year-woman who had been at the scene had been impacted by the lightning strike, but initially left the scene and was later taken to the hospital.

View the full Orlando Sanford International Airport press conference below:

GoFundMe.com, or any other third-party online fundraiser, is not managed by Spectrum Bay News 9 or Spectrum News 13. For more information on how GoFundMe works and its rules, visit http://www.gofundme.com/safety.