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June 21, 2007
Lightning bolt hits House
It never occurred to Mr Quinnell that his new hobby - photographing storms - could be dangerous.
"In the north you could see a few stars and it wasn't raining," he recalled.
"The storm looked like it was five to 10 kilometres to the south. I thought it was perfectly safe to be outdoors, taking photos."
After setting the camera for a four-second exposure he began shooting pictures, suspecting there was little chance of lightning flashing while the shutter was open.
"I hit the button … and there was nothing. I hit the button again … and nothing. On about the fourth attempt I hit the button again and I saw this lightning and heard the thunder."
"It was like a crack. The next thing I was about two metres in the air - it scared the hell out of me."
Mr Quinnell estimated the lightning struck about 20 metres away. "I think it hit the house behind me."
Unhurt, but buzzing with adrenaline, he rushed inside to check the photo on his computer.
"I was amazed. It was the first storm picture I had really taken."
He emailed the picture to friends and suspects one of them forwarded it to the Bureau of Meteorology, because it called to ask if the shot could be published with 11 other spectacular photographs in its 2006 weather calendar.
This nifty piece of Office Spam was submitted by the Patapum Baby Carrier.
Office Spam™ | By Cube Dweller | 7:26 AM
