Lightning strikes likely caused three house fires in Grand Prairie

Grand Prairie firefighters fought back to back house fires, likely caused by lightning strikes Sunday. Firefighters say all three homes had heavy damage to their attic and second floor.

Cell phone video from a homeowner whose house was struck by lightning shows Grand Prairie Firefighters trying to put out a large fire in the roof of this home on Quannah drive. Neighbors say they woke up to a startling lightning strike around 8:30 Sunday morning.

“Very loud. I jumped out of bed. Pretty loud,” said Damian Weeks.

Weeks lives next door to the house that caught fire. He went into the home with a police officer to see if he could help get some pets out.

“My skin felt like it was on fire. My eyes were burning and I couldn't breathe so the officer told me to get out,” said Weeks.

The homeowner didn't want to talk on camera but tells FOX 4 two people and some pets were home at the time.

"We only were able to get one cat out. The rest made it out but they were severely scarred and burned,” said Weeks

No injuries to people were reported, but Grand Prairie Firefighters were busy fighting two other fires also caused by lightning strikes on Forest Trail and Palomino Way.

“Three in one morning, pretty much at the same time. The first two were about three minutes apart,” said assistant fire chief, Bill Murphy, ”For some reason, this area out here south by the lake is almost like a lightning magnet. We get more than our fair share of lightning strikes from the storms.“

Murphy says the rain somewhat helped firefighters dealing with these house fires. Grand Prairie firefighters say all the homeowners were home at the time and heard a loud boom. They are still investigating, but believe all the fires were caused by lightning strikes.

The National Weather Service says North Texas broke a daily rainfall record Sunday, with 2.1 inches of precipitation at DFW Airport.