Fire caused by possible lightning strike leaves several North Lauderdale families displaced
NORTH LAUDERDALE – Several families have been displaced from their North Lauderdale townhomes by a fire that city officials say may have been sparked by a lightning strike.
There are holes in several units of the townhomes off Winners Circle. In all, two units were destroyed, another two severely damaged.
"It's very scary that as many lightning strikes as we have that this could happen. These are all basically wood-framed homes, so I don't know if that added to it or not, but I know over time those will be some things that the fire marshal will have to look at and figure out," said North Lauderdale City Manager and Public Information Officer Mike Sargis.
Residents who were displaced are being helped by the Red Cross. But for many, they are trying to understand how so much could be lost so quickly.
Donna McCully lives in one of the affected units. She told reporter Trish Christakis "all of my belongings are up there. Everything I own is gone. Everything I own is gone. All of my mementos, pictures of my parents that are dead, everything is gone."
Donna also told CBS Miami just yesterday she and her husband were thrilled because they got new phones, and other exciting things were happening in their lives.
She also said her husband almost got arrested for trying to go back into the home to save their animals. In all, four pets had to be treated. Two dogs and two cats were given oxygen by paramedics on the scene.
