Lake Mahopac lightning strike sends four to hospital

Ernie Garcia
Rockland/Westchester Journal News

MAHOPAC - A lightning strike on Lake Mahopac sent four boaters to the hospital Wednesday afternoon.

The lightning strike occurred around 3:30 p.m. when a storm suddenly moved over the lake. Two men and two women who were on an approximately 20-foot pleasure boat in the lake did not come to shore as the storm intensified.

Lightning lights up the afternoon sky over Mahopac July 4, 2018.

The lightning did not directly hit the boat, which did not appear damaged, said Mahopac fire Chief Bill Nikisher. It's more likely that the lightning struck the water near the boat, he said.

"They were out there and they said (the boat) stopped working after they got hit. One of the people said they felt tingling in their legs," said Nikisher.

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The Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department responded to a lightning strike at Lake Mahopac on July 4, 2018.

Putnam sheriffs towed the boat to shore and all four boaters were taken to the Putnam Hospital Center for evaluation, although they didn't have outward signs of injury.

Nikisher said that boaters should always get off the water when a thunderstorm is developing because lightning is attracted to the highest point of a surface.

"Even if you're swimming you get out of the water because it's a flat plane," Nikisher said.

Twitter: @ErnieJourno