Teen girl killed after being struck by lightning while swimming in Georgia
A 15-year-old girl was killed after she was struck by lightning while swimming in the waters encircling Tybee Island, Georgia, authorities said Sunday.
Officers responded to a report of a woman who had been possibly struck by lightning in the ocean near 17th Street shortly after 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, according to the Tybee Island Police Department. After emergency officials performed CPR, the girl was taken to a hospital, where she later died of her injuries, police said.
Her family told investigators that she was visiting Tybee Island from Alabama, authorities said.
"The men and women of the City of Tybee Island are deeply saddened by the loss of this young woman and our hearts remain with her family and friends," Tybee police said in a statement.
Although rare, lightning is a major cause of storm-related deaths in the U.S., according to the National Weather Service. Lightning kills an average of 49 people across the country each year, including hundreds more injured, according to the NWS.
The odds of being struck by lightning is one in 500,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
