Large Tree Has Blazing Fire Within Trunk After Lightning Strike
If you live in a place that gets intense storms, you’re familiar with safety measures people take when the sky starts to unleash its fury. We’re taught not to stand under trees when there’s lightning because trees are often struck by it.
But trees do not always catch on fire because of a lightning strike. That is a much rarer, and a downright unsettling thing to see.
It happened Wednesday along Leeds Junction Road in Wales, Maine. The Wales Fire Department took a video of the spectacle and shared it on its Facebook page for all to see.
“Units are currently operating at a lightning struck vs tree on Leeds junction road,” the department posted.
It’s an eery sight: The background is gray and rainy, but there’s a crack running up a large tree, and fire is licking upward from the inside.
When a commenter asked if the whole tree was on fire, the department responded saying, “yes traveled up into the trunk.”
According to WMTW-TV, the rain helped keep the fire contained to the tree itself, so thankfully it didn’t spread. It was the result of a number of intense storms that hit the area.
One person commented that it looked like the tree from “Sleepy Hollow,” and another asked whether “anybody got a marshmallow.”
“Well that’s the coolest thing I’ve seen in awhile!” wrote another person. “Glad everyone is OK.”
“This is the craziest thing,” WHCF-FM said in its share of the video. “They say it got hit by lightning and set the inside of this tree on fire. You gotta admit 2020 does not disappoint in the ‘Never saw that one coming’ department.”
Even though this kind of occurrence is unusual, it isn’t unheard of. Another spooky incident took place in St. Louis — in a cemetery.
The large tree sported strike marks that scored its bark and ended in a glowing base. The tree itself was nearly hollowed out, slowly smoking and seething against the backdrop of headstones.
The video has been described as a “scene from the afterlife,” and many have commented on both how interestingly cool and creepy it is.
With displays of power like this, it’s clear why you want to take shelter in a safe way (not under a tree!) and avoid being hit by lightning. We don’t need any more close calls this year!
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