A lucky New Yorker survived a lightning strike that struck him as he walked to a dentist appointment during a thunderstorm.
Thomas Fahmy was struck by the electricity last Thursday as he walked to his car parked outside his Staten Island home.
CCTV footage showed him walking with his umbrella aloft in heavy rain. As he walked away from his white picket fence, lightning struck him.
Within a split second, Fahmy collapsed to the ground.
But he miraculously survived the attack and was seen limping back to his home to call for help.
He was heard breathlessly saying over and over again, “Oh my God!”
In an interview with local media, Mr Fahmy said: ‘[It was a] very tense, burning sensation. Tingling, numbness, pain, severe pain in both my feet.’
His neighbor Stephanie Homan, who came to Mr Fahmy’s aid, said: ‘I heard, “Help me, help me”, so I ran to my door and saw him lying on the floor.’
Thomas Fahmy was struck by the electricity last Thursday as he walked to his car parked outside his Staten Island home
As he walked away from his white picket fence, lightning struck him
Fahmy (pictured) miraculously survived the attack and limped back to his home to call for help
He suffered no visible burns or serious injuries but was taken to nearby Northwell Staten Island University Hospital.
He stayed there overnight and was checked by doctors before being released the next day.
Mr. Fahmy works for U.S. Representative Nicole Malliotakis’ Staten Island office.
She released a statement on Mr. Fahmy’s condition on Monday, which read: “We are grateful that Thomas, a member of my congressional staff, is alive and well after being struck by lightning last week.
“I thank the Good Samaritan who came to his aid and the medical staff at Staten Island University Hospital who treated him.”
Mr Fahmy, who says he is a man of faith, said the experience changed his outlook on life.
He said, “Just to appreciate life, smile and breathe fresh air every now and then and don’t let life overwhelm you.”
About 37 million lightning strikes strike the U.S. every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
But the chance of being affected is less than one in a million. Furthermore, about 90 percent of all people struck by lightning survive.
Unfortunately in Florida, A mother’s two-year-old child was killed by a lightning strike last month.
Kenya Glasgow, 31, was walking down the street with her two-year-old daughter Kennedi in Margate, near Fort Lauderdale, Florida, when a thunderstorm broke out on August 23.
They were struck just before 2:30 p.m., and a resident called 911 after finding them on the sidewalk near 7941 Northwest 1st Street, police previously told the Daily Mail.
In harrowing audio of the dispatch calls police received, at least one woman could be heard screaming.
“Oh my God, someone just got struck by lightning!” the woman said in the call obtained by NBC South Florida.
“A lady and her baby just got struck by lightning. They’re downstairs,” another caller reported, while a third described the devastation at the scene.
“I heard someone screaming and I jumped up and there was a big…a woman and a baby on the ground. “It looked like they were getting out of the car, and there was a lot of lightning,” a woman was heard telling dispatch officials.
“People are going crazy,” the woman continued. ‘That’s why I have you on the phone. They are on the ground. There’s a baby and a woman.’
“Oh my God, please, God, Jesus, please protect this family, give them strength,” the caller then prayed.
Officers from Margate Police then responded along with Margate Fire Rescue and immediately began CPR on the mother and child.
When their efforts were unsuccessful, Kenya was rushed to North Broward Medical Center, while Kennedi was taken to Broward Health Medical Center.
“Tragically, despite the lifesaving efforts of first responders and medical personnel, both victims died shortly after arriving at hospitals,” police said.
