Lightning strike likely cause of Hutto house fire, HFD says

HUTTO, Texas (KXAN) — Early Saturday morning, a Hutto mom and her two-year-old child were awoken by a loud boom just minutes before a portion of their home caught fire.

Hutto Fire Department says lightning likely struck the home during the morning’s severe weather, sparking the flames.

Though disoriented and panicked, the mother cradled her child in her arms and went to the living room, HFD Fire Marshall Eric Woods said in a briefing from the Hutto subdivision Saturday morning.

She said she didn’t see flames or smoke, but thought she smelled gas — prompting her to call the gas company who told her to exit the home immediately.

HFD says the boom of the lightning was so loud neighbors initially thought their home had been hit. They looked out of their windows and saw the back of the woman’s home on fire and called 911.

The mother and child are uninjured and went safely to a nearby family member’s home. Neighbors were also evacuated while the Taylor and Georgetown fire departments assisted Hutto in controlling the flames. Nearby Round Rock Fire Department could not respond due to two other house fires in that area.

Hutto Fire says it’s unusual that this amount of house fires would occur during storms, but Woods said the amount of lightning Saturday morning was “excessive,” saying Williamson County was “blanketed” with lightning strikes.

Home lightning strikes

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that residents are still at risk of lightning strikes when inside their home. About one-third of lightning strike injuries happen indoors, CDC says.

During a thunderstorm, it’s advised that people inside a house don’t bathe, wash dishes or perform any activity involving water, as lightning can travel through a building’s plumbing.

Windows, doors, porches and concrete should also be avoided — lightning can travel through metal wires and bars inside all of them.