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Lightning jolts plumbers at work

It's just sprinkling as they head for cover. Suddenly, one man finds himself on the ground.

By ERIN SULLIVAN and GINA PACE
Published August 27, 2006

WESLEY CHAPEL - Less than a mile from where a thunderous bolt killed a teen worker last week, lightning struck again Thursday in Meadow Pointe.

This time it injured four plumbers who were digging trenches to lay pipe for a house in the Nesslewood village, which is still under construction.

The lightning hit shortly after 2:30 p.m. on Addington Place. The workers - Carl Edwards, 23, Arthur Bachmann, 26, Dusan Jojevic, 43, and Daniel Hogan, 25 - were treated at Florida Hospital in Zephyrhills and released Thursday evening.

The guys were on a crew hired by the Plumbers of Soujanen, which is in Odessa. They knew all about lightning and thought it would never strike them, but they also knew to be cautious and get to cover when a storm rolls in. They had heard about 16-year-old Jose Alvarez Jeronimo, who died Aug. 17 while working on the roof of another Meadow Pointe home on Beaconsfield Drive, but they didn't think much of it, other than it was a sad thing to happen.

The storm Thursday came up quickly. It wasn't even raining much, just a few sprinkles, but the plumbers decided to pack up and head for cover anyway, just to be safe.

Daniel Hogan, 25, was inside a truck. Arthur Bachmann, 26, was reaching for a door handle. Carl Edwards, 23, and Dusan Jojevic, 43, were at the tailgate, stowing their toolboxes.

Edwards remembers putting away his toolbox and then being on the ground. He couldn't move his legs. Jojevic's body was red all over, and his leg hurt. Bachmann and Hogan both felt numb and tingly.

None of the men was seriously hurt.

The guys think the lightning struck the ground between Edwards and Jojevic. It was not a direct hit.

Edwards said it took more than an hour to regain feeling in his legs.

"My body is still kind of shaky," he said Thursday evening, after being released from the hospital. "I'm really sore, and I've got a headache, but that's it."

* * *

Federal and state agencies are looking into the death of Jeronimo, the 16-year-old killed by a lightning strike last week.

Federal law prohibits anyone under 18 from working in roofing because it is considered hazardous, said Jo Anne Burgoyne, a Labor Department spokeswoman.

Two parts of the Labor Department - the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which investigates safe working conditions, and the Wage and Hour Division, which investigates possible violations of child labor laws - are looking into Jeronimo's death.

Hiring underage workers also violates Florida law, said Thomas Butler, a spokesman with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, an agency that is also investigating the case.

RAC Construction Framing, where Jeronimo worked, and Tripp Trademark Homes, which is building the house, could face up to $11,000 in federal fines and $2,500 in state fines for hiring an underage worker, the agencies said. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration could levy additional fines if unsafe work conditions are found.

Employees for Tripp Trademark Homes declined comment Thursday.

Oz Lopez, who is a friend of RAC Construction Framing owner Raudel Carrizal's, has been attending meetings with Carrizal to assist with translation. Lopez said Thursday that Carrizal had no idea Jeronimo was 16 and that the teen had lied on his employment application to say he was 18. Lopez also said Jeronimo was not employed as a roofer, but was paid $8 an hour to work as an on-the-ground helper.

"He was shocked to find out," Lopez said. "No one in their right mind would hire a minor."

Jeronimo's brother, Juan Jeronimo, 21, previously told the Times he did not think his brother had lied about his age.

* * *

Anthony Reynes, meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said this part of Florida is the lightning capital of the world because of the cool sea breezes and hot inland breezes fighting each other each summer, creating an atmosphere perfect for thunderstorms.

He said that because of the many thunderstorms and lightning strikes in the area, he's not surprised to hear about two strikes less than a mile apart occurring a week apart. There also was an unconfirmed report of a Zephyrhills man, not in the same location as the plumbers, being struck by lightning Thursday afternoon and taken to Florida Hospital, although there was no information available about the incident or his condition.

"It's a misconception that lightning doesn't strike twice," Reynes said. "Lightning can strike anywhere, at any time."

Reynes said that people who are outdoors and hear a storm approaching need to seek shelter, such as in a building or inside a car. Not under a tree. If you are outdoors and can't find shelter, he said, lie down in a ditch or on the ground "and hope for the best."

Edwards, one of the workers jolted Thursday, said he'll be back to work Friday, probably at the same place. He doesn't see why not.

"I've still got a job to finish," he said.

[Last modified August 27, 2006, 06:43:14]