Lightning hit leaves tourists stranded along Interstate 75

A family visiting Florida from Belgium was stranded along Interstate 75 Tuesday after a lightning bolt disabled their rental car near the Broward County line.

“In my 28 years [as a trooper], this is the first time I’ve ever seen this — lightning strikes and a vehicle loses total power,” said Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Juan Majano, who responded to the 2:45 p.m. incident in the northbound lanes just south of Bass Creek Road. “I feel bad for the family.”

Bathilde Ghesquiere, her husband, Dejas Kevin, and their two young sons were heading north from Miami during day two of their 15-day vacation in Florida with stops planned in Naples, Clearwater and Orlando.

Ghesquiere said she saw a lightning bolt, then the silver Chevrolet Tahoe LT they were traveling in stopped working.

The family did not feel a jolt, but could smell burning and knew something was wrong, Ghesquiere said. They were scared, but no one was hurt, she said.

When Majano reached the family, the Tahoe was on the shoulder but still too close to the road, he said. Majano tried to start the SUV to no avail. They put the vehicle in neutral and moved it to a safe spot.

There was no evidence of fire or burn marks, but the SUV had an electric burn smell to it, Miramar Fire Rescue Inspector Lt. José A. Gregorisch said.

“At the time, we had a huge storm around the area,” Gregorisch said. He added that the fire station about three miles from the incident had lost power four or five times.

A representative from Sixt car rental said the service would send the family a replacement vehicle from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Majano said.

As the family waited from more than 90 minutes on the side of the highway, large bolts of lightning periodically lit stretches of gray clouds, followed by sounds of thunder. emiller@tribune.com, 954-356-4544 or Twitter @EmilyBethMiller