Newly released police body-camera footage shows the desperate rescue of Aaron and Clare Walenga after the married couple were struck by lightning while walking along the West Orange Trail in Winter Garden, Florida.
Officers arrived at the trail shortly after 7.20pm on September 2 to find Aaron Walenga on the ground with a serious head injury. He was groaning in pain and struggling to respond as an officer urged him to keep talking until firefighters arrived.
“OK, stay right there, buddy … can you talk?” the officer is heard saying. “Fire Department is coming, just keep talking to me.”
Nearby, Clare Walenga was also suffering from a head injury and was initially unresponsive. Witnesses told police the strike had left her appearing blue, while bystanders carried out chest compressions before emergency crews reached the scene.
A 911 caller said the couple had been walking beneath an umbrella when lightning struck, causing both of them to collapse. The caller initially believed the bolt had hit a nearby fence because of the force of the impact.
Lightning-struck couple were taken to hospital as trauma alerts
Winter Garden Fire Rescue Chief José P. Gainza Jr said one of the victims was not breathing when crews arrived. CPR was started and both patients were taken to Orlando Regional Medical Centre as trauma alerts.
The couple, who are both in their 40s, were later identified as Aaron and Clare Walenga. They work at Foundation Academy in Winter Garden, where Aaron teaches and coaches and Clare works in the admissions department.
School president Jeff Lawrence said the couple were recovering in hospital and credited three Good Samaritans who stopped to help. He said Clare was later taken off a breathing tube after initially being unresponsive.
An incident report states that Aaron remembered holding Clare’s hand immediately before they were struck. The report also records that the couple had been walking on the trail when the lightning hit.
Weather data recorded several cloud-to-ground strikes close to the trail around the time of the incident. The National Weather Service warns that every such strike is potentially fatal and advises people to seek shelter indoors as soon as they hear thunder.
Florida is among the most lightning-prone states in the United States. Forecasters say people should not wait for a storm to move directly overhead before taking cover, as lightning can strike some distance from the heaviest rain.
