Update: Lightning Strike In Orefield Hit Horse Farm

The lightning strike that ignited a fire at a horse farm in Orefield on Monday night and knocked out power did not cause much damage, thanks to the efforts of three youngsters who were home there at the time, the children's father said Tuesday.

John Duarte, who raises, breeds and trains horses at L'Cima Ranch in Orefield, said the lightning struck a light pole outside a barn that houses his 28 horses, and the current surged along an underground wire into the barn's wash room, where the dryer caught on fire.

He said his three children and all the horses were safely evacuated.

The lightning struck before 9 p.m. at the property off Huckleberry Road, and police and fire crews had it out and under control quickly, according to a scanner report Monday.

Duarte said he was not home, but he got a phone call from one of his children who reported that the light pole was sparking and that there was a lot of smoke. She went to check the lights in the barn, below the living space, and told her father that the lights were out in the kitchen and washroom and that she heard a noise that sounded like water running.

Duarte, who was about 45 minutes from home, said he knew immediately that the sound signaled a bigger problem. He told his two daughters and son to "evacuate immediately," and he called 911. 

"If they didn't call me, it would have been a disaster," Duarte said, as he led horses around the property. "The kids were intelligent."

On Tuesday, crews were repairing a water well on the property, which Duarte said had burned "right up." PPL crews also arrived to repair the light pole. The wash room showed signs of the fire.

Duarte estimated the damage at under $10,000. He said he returned the horses to the barn around 1 a.m., though that was a challenge since they sensed there had been danger at the barn.