Mother Nature unleashed her fury on Northern Arizona last week, leaving emergency crews bouncing from one call to another.
On July 20, a heavy downpour dumped nearly an inch of rain in some parts of the area. And with it came lightning strikes, one of which struck a second-story timeshare unit at 360 Joshua Trail Lane.
According to Sedona Fire District Fire Marshal Gary Johnson, at 1:41 p.m., crews responded to a call after guests of a timeshare owned by Wyndham Resorts reported seeing lightning strike the building. It struck the peak of the roof, entering the attic, sparking a fire.
“The guests in the units below were unaware of what happened until other guests came and told them,” Johnson said. “No one was injured. Crews made quick work of the fire and knocked it down. However, there was a significant amount of water damage to both floors of that unit. The resort made arrangements for those guests displaced by the fire.”
Johnson said lightning often heads for the highest point of a structure to strike. He said while it’s not common for homes or buildings to be hit, it does happen more than some may think.
“It varies depending on the scenario,” he said. “During my career I have not seen a significant amount of strikes that have caused fires. But I have seen a lot of strikes hit and smolder but not enough to cause a fire.”
Around 2 p.m. that same day, SFD got a call regarding several stranded individuals on Back O’ Beyond Road. Johnson said the swift-water rescue team responded to the scene. However, he said it wasn’t a typical swift-water rescue. There are two areas along that roadway in which washes flood quickly. And because nearly an inch of rain had fallen in the area within an hour, it didn’t take long for flooding to begin.
“We had multiple individuals who were basically stuck between these two areas,” Johnson said. “They were not in harm’s way so crews told them to stay where they were. The thing is, the water can rise very quickly but it can go down just as fast. So, we waited until the water went down and assisted them across safely.”
