Lightning strike blasts man from boots

A man in the US has filmed the terrifying moments after he was struck by lightning so powerful it blasted him out of his shoes.

Mobile phone footage shot on Sean O'Connor's mobile phone shows his smoking boots lying on the footpath metres from the near-fatal strike.

"I looked across the driveway and I could see my boots over there," the Atlanta, Georgia man told CBS46 .

"They were no longer on my feet, and one of them was smoking."

Mr O'Connor said he was working in his backyard on Saturday when thunder clouds suddenly rolled in.

"Just as I picked up the rake, I heard a loud crashing sound," he said.

"A few moments later I was picking myself up off the ground."

The force of the strike had caused his tongue to bleed, but it was only after he caught a whiff of burned hair that he realised what had happened.

Tests revealed the strike had interrupted the electrical rhythm of his heart, causing it to beat irregularly.

He remained under observation overnight, with doctors amazing at his lucky escape.

Source: CBS46
Author: Chloe Ross, Approving editor: Simon Black