Four men had taken shelter inside a house at Sand Springs, Nevada, while a violent storm raged outside. They sat talking and listening to the heavy rain, believing the walls around them offered some protection.
Then a lightning bolt struck the ground nearby with a deafening explosion.
The force of the blast ripped the glass-paneled front door from its hinges and hurled it across the room. A young teamster named Green, seated nearest the entrance, was struck so hard that his head crashed through one of the glass panels.
Badly cut and in need of medical care, Green nevertheless survived an accident that could easily have killed everyone in the house.
Jolted By a Lightning Bolt
FALLON, Nevada. — A young man named Green, engaged in teaming between here and Fairview, was the victim of a lightning bolt in Tuesday night’s storm, and in consequence is under the doctor’s care.
The accident occurred at Sand Springs, and Green, in company with three others, had taken refuge in a house from the storm. They were sitting and talking, listening to the terrible downpour outside when, without a moment’s warning, a bolt of lightning struck the ground near the house with an explosion like a hundred batteries firing at once.
The concussion was so great that the glass paneled front door was torn forcibly from its hinges and hurled into the room. It struck Green, who was nearest the doorway, with such force that his head was plunged through one of the glass panels.
He was badly cut by the glass, and Dr. Gardener was summoned to attend his injuries. His wounds were dressed, and yesterday he was brought to Fallon in order that he might have proper medical care.
Green and his companions regard their escape as providential. Had the lightning bolt struck a few feet nearer, probably not one of them would have escaped death.
Source: Tonopah Daily Bonanza. Tonopah, Nev. June 23, 1911.
