SACRAMENTO, California —
Thunderstorms rumbled across Northern California all weekend brought along by the remnants of Tropical Storm Eugene. One wakeboarder found herself front and center in one of these storms.
Most of Northern California is lucky to even see clouds, rain and thunderstorms this time of year, so it's easy to see why the weather caught many people off guard this weekend.
Ellie Everhart, who's originally from Ripon and is now a student at Sacramento State, was wakeboarding on New Melones Lake when a bolt of lightning struck behind her.
Everhart’s friends and family on the boat noticed the sky darkening late in the afternoon while she was wakeboarding. They were caught off-guard, not expecting any thunderstorms that day.
“We didn't realize what was going to happen. Light rain never hurts anybody, but lightning is a different story,” said Everhart.
They turned around once they saw their first bolt, but Everhart was still out on the water on the wakeboard as they headed back to the marina. They began to film and were able to capture video of a second bolt striking the nearby hills behind her.
"Everyone's face kind of dropped when the lightning hit and I realized what was going on instantly. I kind of freaked out a little not gonna lie," said Everhart.
She decided to head back into the boat and they safely made it back to shore as the storm followed closely behind.
Each year in the United States, there are about 25 million cloud-to-ground lightning flashes and about 300 people struck by lightning, according to the National Weather Service. Lightning can strike up to 10 miles away from rainfall and you are in danger anytime thunder is present.
