RAPID CITY, SD — Last night at 3:00am lightning struck a family’s home in Rapid Valley, damaging the home. The strike, which damaged the area of their daughters’ bedroom left the family shaken. The homeowner, who wished to remain anonymous, stated on the event: “By miracle, [my daughter] just happened to fall asleep downstairs tonight and was not in her room. Firefighters said it was a good thing she wasn’t”.
UPDATE:
The following is an update from the Rapid Valley Volunteer Fire Department, courtesy of Joe Tjaden: “At 2:49 on the morning of Wednesday May 14th, the Rapid Valley Volunteer Fire Department and its automatic aid partners (Rapid City Fire Department, Box Elder Volunteer Fire Department, and North Haines Volunteer Fire Department were dispatched to [removed at family’s request] in Rapid Valley for a report of a structure fire caused by a lightning strike. Rapid Valley Chief and a Pennington County Sheriff’s Deputy were the first to arrive on scene and confirmed the house was struck by lightning. They also confirmed that all occupants were safe and accounted for.
Rapid Valley and Rapid City personnel arrived and performed overhaul – systematic approach to searching for any sources of fire. There were no signs of ongoing fire found. The lightning strike had damaged the exterior of the home. There was also damage to the home’s electrical system. West River Electric was requested to shut down power to the house until the system could be repaired. Montana Dakota Utilities was also requested to shut down the natural gas supply to the home until that system could also be evaluated.
The occupants of the home stayed with friends for the remainder of the night. The home was secured from the weather prior to fire units being released.”
