Cherry Hill teen critical after being struck by lightning
Lightning struck a 14-year-old Cherry Hill boy yesterday afternoon, stopping his heart, setting his shirt on fire, and eventually landing him at the Temple University Hospital's Burn Center, where he was in critical but stable condition this morning.
Lightning struck a 14-year-old Cherry Hill boy yesterday afternoon, stopping his heart, setting his shirt on fire, and eventually landing him at the Temple University Hospital's Burn Center, where he was in critical but stable condition this morning.
Just after 5:30 p.m., as thunderstorms moved through, a resident in 300 block of Monroe Avenue heard the loud boom of a lightning strike and looked out the window to see a boy lying on the ground with his shirt on fire, according to Lt. Bill Kushina of Cherry Hill police.
The resident called 911, ran outside and used his own shirt to put out the flames, Kushina said.
When rescue personnel arrived, Zachary Yizzi, 14, had no pulse.
He was revived and taken to Cooper University Medical Center, then transferred to the burn center at Temple University Hospital.
Yizzi's home is in the 300 block of Union Avenue, just around the corner from where he was found.
Kushina couldn't recall another case of a person struck by lightning during his 10-plus years in Cherry Hill.