Lightning to blame for 3 house fires in Frisco, fire marshal says
FRISCO, Texas - The Frisco Fire Department dealt with three house fires on Tuesday afternoon that they believe were caused by possible lightning. At least one appears to have been destroyed.
Crews rushed to put out flames on Silverbrook Lane, Old Province Way and Norwich Lane just after 3 p.m. The three homes are within three miles of each other.
Pictures from the department show flames coming out of the roof of one of the houses.
One homeowner said she can’t describe the sound, but she just knew her house was struck by lightning.
"It’s a sound I’ve never heard. But when you hear it, you know your house got hit by lightning. I can’t describe it," said Kelly Mallory, whose home was hit by lightning.
She says she immediately went upstairs to check the attic.
"So right here, it hit the metal on the outside of the house. This was all insulation up here. And so when I went up in the attic, I just saw flames over here," she recalled.
Mallory and her best friend were the only ones home at the time. Both made it out safely.
"Thankfully got the dogs, got out and the fire department was so quick."
About two miles away on Silverbrook Lane and Old Province Way, two other homes were hit by lightning.
"Neighbors said that they saw lightning, and then the house was on fire," said Frisco Fire Marshall Kelly Kistner.
While crews were battling the flames, they discovered a second fire across the street. The damage to one of the homes was much more severe than Mallory's home.
From SKY 4, you can see the flames tore through most of the structure.
"These two behind are right across the street both were lightning strikes and confirmed lightning strikes.," Kistner said.
The Frisco Fire Department says lightning strike data will show if the homes were hit by the same bolt of lightning or two separate ones.
"It’s very rare to get three lightning strikes in a single day," Kistner said.
One Frisco firefighter was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Another firefighter was treated for heat exhaustion.
Two homes are not livable right now.
Mallory’s family can stay in their home, something she’s very thankful for.
"I am not going to take any of this for granted. And it’s stuff. It’s stuff, so we’re fine," she said.
Frisco Fire says six other structures were hit by lightning but did not cause a fire.
"When we do have severe weather the best thing to do is get inside, take cover, find that safety, and stay out of the weather," Kistner said.
Mallory said she is now looking to get lightning rods installed.
For the homes on Silverbrook Lane and Old Province Way, the Frisco Fire Department said it will be up to the homeowners and the insurance companies to see if the homes can be restored or if they are a total loss.
Carrollton also saw four homes catch fire around the same time. The Carrollton Fire Department said it was too early to determine the cause of the fires.