Firefighters recall power behind strike of lightning

Tuesday, July 28, 1998 | 10:59 a.m.

Three Clark County firefighters say they're thankful to be alive after they learned firsthand the impact of a lightning strike.

Capt. Scott Taggard, 35, fire engineer Ralph Clary, 38, firefighter Mark Rainey, 34, and American Medical Response paramedics Glenn Glacer, 32, and Shannon Cavey, 35, were hit as they were responding about 3:30 p.m. Friday to an accident on Interstate 15 near the Lake Mead cutoff.

All survived the lightning strike. On Monday, Taggard, Clary and Rainey talked of their experience. They were joined by firefighter Holly Nicholson, who was at the accident scene but not struck.

A pickup truck driven by Marvin Hamilton of Arkansas had rolled off the highway and landed about 30 yards from the interstate.

Nicholson, 38, said she was trying to remove Hamilton, who was trapped inside the vehicle, when the bolt hit the ground and broke off into fingers hitting the fire engine, the ambulance and the rescuers.

"All of the sudden there was an extremely loud crash and an almost blinding light," Nicholson said.

The next thing she saw was the firefighters lying on the ground.

"They eventually got up and started stumbling around incoherently -- except for Taggard," Nicholson said. "I thought he was dead because of the way he was lying on the ground."

Nicholson said Taggard, who had come off the ground about 2 feet and flew back about 5 feet, was unconscious for about 20 to 30 seconds.

Hamilton died that night at UMC. He suffered a ruptured spleen, broken ribs and a punctured lung. A passenger in the vehicle, Hamilton's grandson, survived the accident.

Taggard was tending to the bumps and abrasions of the grandson when the lightning hit.

"It felt like someone took a sledgehammer and hit me on the top of the head as hard as he could," he said. "The next thing I knew, I was looking up at the sky."

"When we first arrived on the scene, it looked like the worst of the storm had passed. The thunder was off in the distance, but it was still raining. We thought the worst that would happen is that we'd get wet."

Clary said he remembers an explosion, then falling to the ground. His body felt numb and he was struggling to get up. "It was a blur," he said. "You're trying to do something, and your body and arms are not responding."

Taggard and Hamilton were flown to University Medical Center. Nicholson said Air Life 7 came from Sky Harbor Airport in a matter of minutes. "Their on- scene time was four minutes. The transport time was six minutes. They just did an incredible job."

Nicholson said cardiac and neurological problems are the main concern with lightening victims. The body experiences massive current flow, muscle contractions and disruption of neurological conditions, she said.

Racer, who was holding the door to the ambulance, had his hands burned. He was treated and released that night. Cavey was held overnight. Rainey was held for observation and released.

Nicholson, who has been with the department for 6 years, has returned to work. Clary has worked with the department almost 12 years, and Taggard has been with the department 16 years. Both are still recuperating and plan to be back to work next week.