Man struck by lightning thrown eight feet | People

BURKE COUNTY - A Burke County man suffered the shock of a lifetime during a pop-up thunderstorm Tuesday night.

Twenty three-year-old Kenneth Davis pulled into his driveway along Airport Rhodhiss Road around 8:30 p.m. when he noticed the storm rolling in.

Click here to view a photo gallery from the scene!

Davis turned to his roommate after getting out of his car and said, "Oh look, a pop-up thunderstorm."  As if on cue, Davis said, a bolt of lightning struck a tree about ten feet from where he was standing. 

The electricity traveled through the ground and into Davis, tossing him about eight feet through the air and dropping him on a pile of gravel, Davis told WBTV Wednesday morning. 

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According to Davis, the sun was still out and the storm appeared to still be about ten to 15 miles away.

"I had no clue what happened," he said, "I thought a bomb went off."

Davis said it felt as though all of his teeth were coming out as he was flying through the air. The smell of burning hair and the tingle running through his entire body confirmed to him that he had, in fact, been struck by lightning. 

"I feel ok today," Davis said, other than some stiffness and a sore arm from landing on the ground.

The tree wasn't as lucky.

Davis describes a hole left in the ground near the base of the tree, which sits right next to his house.  Shards of bark punctured the side of the home from the lightning strike. One piece of wood even made its way through the wall into Davis' bedroom.

Medic was called to examine Davis.  Other than high blood pressure, they gave him a clean bill of health.

When asked what his prognosis was, Davis exclaimed, "Extremely lucky!"

Click here to view a photo gallery from the scene!