All members, and pets, of a Forsyth County family were safe and accounted for Wednesday morning when lightning struck their home on Grand Forest Drive in Central Forsyth.
It happened in the 9:00 hour when lightning struck a pine tree adjacent to the home, which then jumped to the house, igniting an attic and bonus room area of the home, according to Jason Shivers, Forsyth County Fire division chief.
"The homeowner reported to us that he knew as soon as the lightning hit, his home had been hit. He could tell from the sound and feel of it," said Shivers.
The man immediately went outside, and saw smoke and flames coming from his home. He got his family and pets out of the home and called 911.
"(Responders) got the fire under control, actually very quickly once we arrived, but the fire had spread through the attic space and the second floor fairly quickly," said Shivers.
The home is salvageable, though it will take a few months before it can be livable once again.
"We were able, thankfully, to salvage a lot of valuables — a car in the garage that was very special to him, but most importantly, he and his wife and his grandchild and his family pets all made it out safe and sound," said Shivers.
The family has relatives in the area, and will likely be staying with them, said Shivers.
Meantime, firefighters also dealt with three other minor storm-related calls Wednesday morning, all related to lightning strikes.
In one case, a home had a wall blown out, but no fire, from a strike. The other two cases involved home fire alarms sounding due to smoke, but no damage occurred.
