Members of the Calgary Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services were called to a location south of the airport after four people were injured Wednesday afternoon by lightning while working on a metal roof.
A roofing crew was atop a building patching the roof when an impending storm halted their work.
“We were just gathering our stuff to get down off the roof and it started raining,” recalls roofer Daniel Ludwig. “Flash, crash and we’re all on the roofdeck.”
"It felt like getting hit with a baseball bat."
Crews responded to the location in the 500 block of Palmer Road Northeast, in an industrial area near the Calgary International Airport, at approximately 2:00 p.m. after four people were reportedly injured by lightning.
Ludwig says his initial concern was more lightning. "It was more just get off the roof. Get the hell out of there."
"We went through and made sure everyone was alright," said Ludwig. He believed someone inside the building called 911.
On arrival, four patients were assessed, two of which required additional medical treatment for symptoms consistent with electric shock. The pair was transported by ambulance to the Foothills Medical Centre in stable, non-life threatening condition.
'Everyone's good as far as I know," said Ludwig. Ludwig says he wasn't seriously injured but his nerves were left shaken.
The roofer says his group will likely take a few days off before resuming the job but the incident will be discussed for years to come.. "It will be a fun one for the bar, that's for sure."
