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Lightning Strike Injures Golfer and Ignites Two-Acre Brush Fire at Colorado Course

Officials say the incident underscores lightning's role as a leading natural wildfire cause in dry summer conditions.

Overview

  • A lightning strike at Fox Hollow Golf Course near Lakewood hit a golfer and started a slow-moving grass and brush fire, and the injured person was taken to a local hospital and discharged the next morning, according to West Metro Fire Rescue.
  • Fire crews contained the blaze after it burned about two acres, built containment lines to stop forward progress, and began thorough mop-up work to extinguish remaining hotspots.
  • Responders used a drone with infrared imaging to locate hidden pockets of heat and expected to remain on scene for several hours to prevent rekindling.
  • Irrigated fairways and greens limited the fire's spread so no homes or structures were threatened or damaged, officials said.
  • The incident follows a separate suspected-arson arrest reported the day before and prompted renewed warnings that lightning and human-caused ignitions both pose elevated wildfire risk in the region's dry fuels.