Overview
- A lightning bolt hit the water near the 6500–6600 block of Estero Boulevard on Friday, July 3, about 2:18–2:20 p.m., leaving 51-year-old Viktar Kiryk dead and three relatives taken to hospitals in stable condition.
- Bystanders began CPR and deployed an automated external defibrillator before Fort Myers Beach fire crews and Lee County deputies arrived, but one victim was pronounced dead at the scene and the coroner later removed the body.
- Authorities have not yet determined whether all four people were struck directly or were injured by the electrical energy in the water near the strike, and investigations are ongoing.
- Local officials and the fire district urged residents and visitors to monitor weather closely, stay out of the water if lightning is seen, seek immediate shelter, and wait at least 30 minutes after the last thunder before returning outdoors.
- Florida faces frequent summer lightning, Lee County is a known lightning hotspot, and safety warnings gain urgency during holiday weekends when more people are on beaches and exposed to sudden storms.