HOLT, Fla., July 21, 2021—A short but intense thunderstorm that pushed through Holt around the lunch hour left water customers dry after a lightning strike hit a couple of water lines today.

According to Holt Water Works Manager Donna Ash, a lightning strike around 11:30 a.m. blew out a 6-inch and 2-inch water line along Pete Parker Road.

“We thought we took a direct hit,” she said. “We almost came out of our chairs. It lit the back porch up.”

The strike hit the ground between 470 and 472 Pete Parker Road, taking out the two water lines that run in front of the Holt Water building.

Ash called B’Geai’s Salon, located between Pete Parker Road and U.S. Hwy 90, next door to Holt Water, to make sure everyone was OK. They reported the strike shook the whole building, but otherwise were unaffected.

A customer on Pete Parker called the water office and said the strike knocked pictures off the wall. Other than “water going everywhere,” they were also OK, but without water.

Overall, the strike only affected two residences and the water office.

Holt Water’s maintenance supervisor, Patrick Broxson, is assessing the damage and hopes to have the lines repaired as quickly as possible.