Two separate lightning strikes ignited fires on the night of April 4, damaging homes and a pallet yard.
The first lightning-resultant fire occurred at a residence in the 1800 block of Broken Bend Drive in Westlake, a small community slightly north of Keller.
Firefighters from the surrounding communities of Southlake, Grapevine, Keller, and North Richland Hills responded to the fire.
While there was severe structural damage to the home, everyone inside the house made it out safely. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire and save several of the occupants’ belongings.
One firefighter was injured while responding to the fire but is expected to make a full recovery. No other injuries were reported.
The second fire occurred at around 9:45 p.m. in Alvarado, a town located in Johnson County, about an hour south of Westlake. Neighbors reported flames coming from a pallet yard.
As in Westlake, a lightning strike is believed to have started the fire.
Lynn Dykes, who lives next door to the pallet yard, said that winds were initially blowing the flames away from the nearby residences but quickly changed direction to threaten his home. He added that the house next door to his had caught fire but that he helped extinguish it.
The area was under a tornado warning at the time, but Dykes said that all he could think about was putting out the fire before it could spread any further.
“I’ve experienced fires before, but nothing so personal,” Dykes said to WFAA. “Everything I have is in that house.”
Aerial footage taken the morning of April 5 showed the destruction left behind by the blaze, including severe damage to the home’s roof.
Dykes credits the Rendon Fire Department with putting out the fire and saving his property, which was separated from the pallet yard by a fence.
The lighting fires occurred as strong winds moved through North Texas late on April 4 and early on April 5. Radar also detected a tornado in Johnson County near Egan that flipped an RV and injured a man as he was helping his stepdaughter to safety.
