Following a lightning strike across the street from the White House on Thursday night, one person is hurt and three people are dead.
A DC Metropolitan Police spokeswoman stated that James Mueller, 76, and Donna Mueller, 75, passed away as a result of their injuries when lightning struck Lafayette Park close to the White House on Thursday night. The Wisconsin-based couple was on vacation. Police reported that a 29-year-old guy passed away from his wounds on Friday afternoon. His identity is being kept a secret until his family is informed.
The other injured person’s condition has not been made public.
According to a law enforcement source, the victims were sheltering from the storm behind a tree. Around 7 p.m. ET, the thunderstorm reached the DC area.
Karine Jean-Pierre, the press secretary for the White House, released a statement on Friday saying, “We are saddened by the tragic loss of life after the lightning strike in Lafayette Park. Our hearts are with the families who lost loved ones, and we are praying for those still fighting for their lives.”
According to John Jensenius, a specialist with the National Lightning Safety Council, the three victims were the 10th, 11th, and 12th persons to die in the United States as a result of lightning so far this year.
According to data from the previous 10 years, the US has seen 16 lightning-related fatalities annually as of August 4th, Jensenius stated on Friday. He said that the deaths this week were the first in Washington since May 17, 1991, when lightning hit a tree at a lacrosse game, killing one person and injuring 10.
