Lightning in Walton County, Florida

The South Walton Fire District (SWFD) received a call at 9:00 a.m. CDT reporting a structure fire at 145 Paradise By the Sea Blvd in the Inlet Beach area. Reports from the neighbors indicated that there was an early morning thunderstorm with severe lightning. Sometime close to 5:30 a.m. CDT neighbors stated they witnessed lightning strike near this residence. It wasn't until 3.5 hours later that smoke and flames were reported coming from this 3 story, (est.) 12,000 sq. ft. beach front home. Within minutes of receiving the initial 9-1-1 call, SWFD units arrived on scene and found fire coming from the third floor roof area. Prior to arrival, it was determined that fire had spread throughout the sub-floors making extinguishment difficult. Despite that, SWFD crews were able to minimize the fire damage and bring the scene under control within an hour of the initial call. The residence was valued at an estimated $9.6 million dollars with damage to the structure and contents estimated at $1.6 million dollars. The owners were not home at the time of the fire and there were no injuries to report. The fire was investigated by the SWFD Fire Marshal and the Florida State Fire Marshal's Office.

Early morning thunderstorms caused major lightning damage to a beach front home in the Inlet Beach area.