SAN ANTONIO — Officials believe a lightning strike may be to blame for an early morning fire at a home on the south side of town.
Jose Rodriguez, 17, and his grandparents escaped uninjured while at the same time amazed by the power of Mother Nature.
“Just wild, it’s crazy but this house has been burned down before so this would have been the second time if it actually did some serious damage," Rodriguez said.
San Antonio firefighters responded to the 100 block of Klein Street near South Flores Street around 3:53 a.m. Wednesday for reports of a fire.
Rodriguez woke up around 3:30 a.m. then went back to sleep but his snooze session ended earlier than expected.
“I just got woken up by my grandpa. He was just like get up, get up let’s go," Rodriguez said. “Usually he’s never panicked so we went to wake him (great grandfather on the first floor) up in this room and that’s when we all came out and I went out there to the gate and there was smoke.”
When firefighters arrived at the location, the attic of the home was on fire. Officials believe the fire may have been caused by a lightning strike.
The family of five (including Alpha the dog) was displaced from the home.
Rodriguez shared photos of the damage from the fire and fire suppression efforts. He said his family's been advised by firefighters to stay the night elsewhere until the fumes clear out. Most likely, Rodriguez, his grandparents and Alpha will hunker down with other family while they figure out what's next.
“Firefighters had to make holes in the roof to spray up there so the roof is all collapsed," Rodriguez said.
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