LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Severe summer thunderstorms tore through Louisville on Wednesday, taking down power lines, ripping up trees and striking homes with lightning bolts.
In the PRP neighborhood, residents said a giant tree was struck by lightning and fell on a power line. At one point, nearly 500 LG&E customers lost power, and Lower Hunters Trace closed to vehicles.
"I saw a big flash, and then it came down, " said Judy Drakopulos, a PRP resident whose front yard was left strewn with debris.
She said she was checking the mail when the tree came crashing down -- a "walking miracle."
"I'm alive," Drakopulos said. "The biggest part of the tree would have hit me and killed me."
Jeff Sherwin, the children's pastor at Ormsby Heights Baptist Church, witnessed the power line burst into flames.
"We saw a bunch of smoke over this way, and we were hoping it wasn't a house fire," Sherwin said.
In Anchorage, a home was set on fire by a lightning bolt on Locus Lane. Anchorage Middletown Fire and EMS said they saw an uptick in house fire calls.
"We've received multiple calls across our district today for house fires that have been struck by lightning," Jordan Yuodis, spokesperson for Anchorage Middletown Fire and EMS, said.
He added that no residents or firefighters were injured.
Heavy tree branches also crashed down in the Algonquin neighborhood in West Louisville.
"There's a lot of work to be done, so, we're going to be busy the next few weeks," said Archie Snorton, a resident who saw damage in his backyard as a result of the storms.
There are more storms and extreme heat in the forecast.
Continue to stay weather aware and follow the Weather Impact Team's latest forecast.