Two Lightning-Caused House Fires Strike Clay County in Span of 20 Minutes

HAYESVILLE, N.C. — Clay County Fire & Rescue crews battled two residential structure fires less than a half-hour apart Monday evening, both sparked by lightning strikes during severe weather.

The first call came in about 7:45 p.m. for a house fire on Hogsed Drive in the Elf School Fire District. Arriving firefighters found heavy fire conditions and began a defensive attack aimed at protecting nearby vehicles and structures. The home was destroyed. Investigators determined a lightning strike caused the blaze.

While crews were still responding to and working that fire, a second alarm sounded at 8:07 p.m. for a residence on Oak Forest Road in the Hayesville Fire District. Some units en route to Hogsed Drive were diverted to the new incident.

There, the homeowner reported that lightning had traveled along a propane line and ignited a fire in the crawl space. The first crew on scene entered the crawl space and quickly extinguished the flames before the fire could cause major damage to the house.

Responding to two structure fires nearly simultaneously demanded significant coordination and resources. Clay County Fire & Rescue is primarily a volunteer department.

Clay County EMS and Towns County Fire & Rescue assisted at the Hogsed Drive fire. The owner of Papa’s Pizza To Go, who lives nearby, also delivered pizzas to firefighters working the scene — a gesture the department said was especially welcome after a long night.

Both fires underscore how quickly severe weather can create dangerous conditions with little warning, officials said.

Anyone interested in joining Clay County Fire & Rescue can learn more at claymcfire.org/join.