Teen shocked when lightning strikes nearby tree

ORLANDO, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - An Orlando-area teenager was shocked when lightning zapped a tree at his school.

According to officials at The First Academy, the boy was hurt during the lunch hour.  They said he was in the parking lot at the time of  the lightning strike, and he was responsive when paramedics arrived. 

Orlando Fire Rescue said the lightning struck a tree, and the 14-year-old boy was found nearby.  His demeanor was described as "lethargic." Officials say he wasn't hit by a tree limb and the lightning could have traveled through the ground and hit him.

"A conductor is something that electricity flows through, so people are conductors," explained Katherine Kerr, an educator at the Orlando Science Center, "and if two things that conduct electricity are near each other, the electricity will flow from one to the other.  So, it could go from a tree or a building to a person."

Authorities said this is why it is advisable to stay indoors during a storm.

The boy was taken to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and was in stable condition.  The First Academy expressed gratitude to the paramedics who responded.