2 House Fires Sparked By Lightning In Cedar Park

CEDAR PARK, TX — A pair of house fires in Cedar Park on Wednesday were sparked by cloud-to-ground lightning as storms swept through the region, a city spokeswoman said.

A spokeswoman sought to differentiate the fires — within three miles of each other — were not caused by direct lightning strikes. An investigation continues, but the spokeswoman provided details on each blaze Wednesday evening:

• The first, one-alarm fire at 1406 Old Mill Rd. occurred at around 7 a.m. The Cedar Park Fire Department was the lead agency, withe help from four local fire units and mutual aid from fire crews in Leander, Jollyville and Sam Bass Fire departments. All residents exited the home safely, and no injuries were reported. The Williamson County Fire Marshal's Office determined the cause to have been a lightning strike to the ground, with the current then traveling to the house through an electrical conduit to the homeowner's irrigation system inside the garage, the spokeswoman said.

• About three hours later just after the noon hour, the fire department was dispatched to 2755 Grand Oaks Loop for a second, one-alarm fire. The local fire department was again the lead agency with assistance from the crews helping extinguish the first fire, a spokesperson said. Like the first incident, all occupants of the home exited safely. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was similar to the first incident, attributed to a lightning strike to the ground that traveled through an electrical conduit or gas plumbing into the attic — causing an arc between the gas line and furnace, the spokesperson said.

The dual lightning strikes occurred within three hours and three miles of each other:

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers previously produced a primer on protecting homes from lightning. For their part, AccuWeather officials produced a video outlining some ways to protect homes from lightning strikes: