Micael Lennartsson, 42, acted swiftly when lightning struck his neighbor's house in Åbyggeby, Gävle, setting it on fire. Armed with a fire extinguisher, he managed to control the blaze before it spread. His quick actions also helped alert and evacuate an elderly couple from another burning house, earning him praise from the community.
Heroic Neighbor Saves Homes from Lightning-Induced Fires in Gävle
Heroic Neighbor Saves Homes from Lightning-Induced Fires in Gävle
Micael Lennartsson, 42, was jolted awake by a loud crash in Åbyggeby, near Gävle. Lightning had struck his neighbor's house, igniting a fire.
"I threw on a t-shirt, pants, and flip-flops, and grabbed our fire extinguisher," Micael said.
Gävleborg was at the center of a storm that swept across the country on Sunday night, with SMHI recording 500 lightning strikes in the region amidst heavy rain.
Despite the storm, Micael and his family had managed to fall asleep. Suddenly, lightning struck outside their home.
"I woke up to a terrible noise, the house almost shook," he recounted.
Risk of Burning Down
Micael got up and saw through the window that the neighbor's house was on fire.
"I threw on a t-shirt, pants, and flip-flops, and grabbed our fire extinguisher to try to put out the fire," he said.
Fortunately, the fire hadn't spread, and Micael was able to stop it relatively quickly.
"Had I arrived a minute later, the house could have burned down."
Another Neighbor's House Caught Fire
Micael then managed to contact the neighbors, an elderly couple, and shouted for them to evacuate. At the same time, he noticed another neighbor's house had caught fire.
"I took a fire extinguisher from the house I had just extinguished and went across the yard again to help the other neighbors."
The fire had taken hold in their outbuilding and couldn't be stopped with a regular extinguisher. The building was destroyed in the flames, but no one was injured.
"Unfortunately, the outbuilding couldn't be saved," he said.
Praised for His Efforts
Micael has been praised for his efforts, especially by the elderly couple who expressed great gratitude.
"I'm just glad I could think so rationally at the moment and knew where our firefighting equipment was, so I could grab it and go," he said.