Families in Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac have to find a new home after narrowly escaping a powerful lightning bolt that reduced their residence to ashes late Thursday afternoon.
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“It started to hail, so we went to pick up our daughters from school,” says Cindy Marcil.
Photo Laurent Lavoie
The residence of Cindy Marcil, mother of five children aged between 9 and 22, was struck by lightning on Thursday, June 16 at the end of the afternoon.LAURENT LAVOIE/LE JOURNAL DE MONTRÉAL/AGENCE QMI
Upon her return, the mother of five children aged 9 to 22 found that her residence in the Laurentians was engulfed in flames.
“I stopped my car in the middle and I collapsed on the ground,” she says, before being strangled by emotion.
In his absence, lightning had struck his house and caused an intense blaze, from which emerged imposing flames and black smoke.
Photo Laurent Lavoie
Ash-covered furniture stood upright.
About forty firefighters from several municipalities, including Deux-Montagnes and Boisbriand, were called to fight the fire.
The temperature of a lightning bolt is estimated at 30,000°C, according to extreme weather expert Patrick de Bellefeuille of MétéoMédia.
“It burns instantly,” he says, snapping his fingers.
According to testimonies collected by The newspaperthe heat given off by the flames was so strong that the door handles of the neighboring houses were hot.
The disaster also affected three houses, two of which very heavily, as evidenced Friday by the rubble that was found in the open air after the destruction of the roofs.
Two families of four and seven as well as an elderly lady were thrown into the street.
In extremis
The life of the eldest may have been saved in extremis by Armand Côté, who lives across the street.
Photo Laurent Lavoie
Armand Côté rushed to the door of an elder after hearing a big “boom!” and seeing white smoke billowing from the roof of a house struck by lightning on Thursday, June 16. LAVOIE/THE MONTREAL JOURNAL/QMI AGENCY
He rushed to his door after hearing a loud “boom” and seeing white smoke billowing from the roof.
“She didn’t know what was going on, she was listening to television, is still surprised Mr. Côté, who then filmed the blaze. By putting one foot [à l’extérieur], it went “phew”, and there, the fire had caught. »
” When [la dame] saw the smoke, the first thing she did was try to save my dog,” adds Elizabeth McCarthy, daughter of Cindy Marcil, wiping away her tears.
Unfortunately, Méo, the seven-year-old three-legged beast, perished in the fire.
Courtesy photo, Elizabeth McCarthy
Little Méo, who has three legs and is 7 years old, died after lightning in Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac on Thursday June 16 struck residences. COURTESY OF ELIZABETH MCCARTHY
Future to be determined
Difficult to know what now awaits the Marcil family, who fears having difficulty finding accommodation with the overpriced rents.
The mother explains that she volunteers and works part-time, as she has to take care of her five children, some of whom suffer from coordination problems.
“We are always good at helping others, but when it happens to us, we are not able to help ourselves,” she quips.
On social networks, many citizens had already mobilized on Friday to offer aid to the victims.
What to know about lightning bolts
- 2 to 3 Canadians die from lightning every year
- The vast majority of these deaths occur in Quebec, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario
- There is less than a one in a million chance of being struck by lightning
- The heat of a lightning bolt is estimated at 30,000°C
- It can carry up to 100 million volts of electricity
Sources: Environment Canada and Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety