Alberta family struggles in aftermath of fatal lightning strike

Tweet

I can't imagine being this poor woman -- losing my unborn baby and my husband at the same time. :( From the news Sunday, this happened at a lake in my area on Saturday. --- PIGEON LAKE, Alta. (CP) - A woman whose husband and unborn baby were killed in a horrific lightning strike at a recreational area on the Father's Day weekend says they were experienced campers and fishers. Kara Hicks of Leduc, Alta., was in an Edmonton-area hospital in stable condition Sunday, along with her sister, Kathleen Keen of Edmonton. Their brother, Aubrey Keen of Saskatchewan, had been treated and released from hospital in Wetaskiwin after the Saturday tragedy, which also injured three other people. Kara's 26-year-old husband, Chris Hicks, was killed instantly when lightning hit a tree they were standing near. Kara, who had been pregnant but lost the baby, issued a statement Sunday through a Capital Health spokeswoman. "They arrived at the boat dock Saturday morning about 10:30, loaded the boat into the water and began hauling the gear onto the dock when they noticed a storm in the distance that approached quickly," said the spokeswoman. "They pulled the boat ashore quickly and moved the gear along the treeline, and were just discussing whether they should wait out the storm or head back when lightning struck. "It all happened very quickly, according to Kara." Hicks told the spokeswoman her family would not issue any further statements, adding they wanted to be allowed to grieve in private. "(The victims) were all laying on the ground," said Monica Silva, who was camping with her family at Pigeon Lake, southwest of Edmonton, when the fatal bolt struck. "Some of them were covered up. They were very pale. It was a sad scene." Silva said the early afternoon storm was brief and only cast a half-dozen lightning bolts. The deadly one came last, and there was no mistaking it, she said. "It was so loud. We all jumped because we thought it hit us. It was that close. "We're never in our life seen something that was that close to us. I've never heard lightning hit that hard. We've never jumped so high." The Silvas and their relatives were under the awning of their trailer, about 140 metres away from the group of trees near the provincial park's boat launch where the lightning struck. Joe Silva said he saw the flash out of the corner of his eye. "We were sitting just outside of our trailer and boom and bang and boom," he said. "Five minutes after that we hear an ambulance. The sirens kept getting closer and closer. Once we heard them 150 maybe 200 yards away we knew something had happened so we went down to the dock." When the family arrived, they saw paramedics already tending to the victims. One man, who had been boating on the lake, performed CPR on a man now believed to be Chris Hicks. The man spent 25 minutes trying to revive Hicks, but nothing could be done. "He said they were moaning," Monica Silva said. "A few of them couldn't feel their legs. But he knew there was no response from the guy he performed the CPR on, so that was his main goal." The group was taking shelter from the thunderstorm near a tree at a boat launch when lightning hit them, Joe Silva said. The lightning hit the tree about shoulder height. RCMP Cpl. Kevin Krebs said the other survivors of the lightning strike suffered various injuries including burns. Logan Van Imschoot, a conservation officer with Alberta Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture, was one of several officers who responded to the call. When he arrived, he said the victims were being treated by RCMP, EMS and other conservation officers. He said the six were conscious, adding there were no children in the group. Van Imschoot said the tree that was struck had its some of its bark stripped off, leaving a singed area. Pigeon Lake is a popular camping and fishing lake for the Edmonton area, but Monica Silva said she didn't think she'd ever go back. "Bad memories," she said. Her attitude toward lightning has changed as well. "I never used to be scared of lightning and I'm now terrified of it." The odds of being struck by lightning in a lifetime are one in 400,000, according to the U.S. National Weather Service. Being struck by lightning can cause cardiac arrest, and survivors complain in the days after being struck of intense headaches, ringing in the ears, dizziness, nausea, vomiting and other post-concussion types of symptoms.