A man in Bowen Island, B.C., says he survived a lightning strike that blew his Crocs right off his feet.
During a mid-August thunderstorm, Cal Misener said he went out to close the windows on his truck while wearing his trusty pair of the much-maligned rubberized clogs.
He had one foot on the running board, the other on the ground, and his right hand on the ignition when he got a shock that he’ll never forget.
“Bam, just this unbelievably loud bang,” he said. “I think the whole truck was energized, came up my right leg, went out my left, basically blew my Croc shoe across the road, and then just laid me right out on the ground.”
Get daily National news
Misener said he believes he was conscious for most of it. He recalled crawling to the house for help. He said his wife remembers finding him by the truck and helping him inside.
- B.C. 2026 budget ‘neither’ big cuts nor tax increase, minister says
- Former Conservative leader John Rustad says he’s not running for his old job
- Parts of B.C.’s South Coast set to see snow-rain mix with ‘rapidly changing’ travel conditions
- Survivor of one of Canada’s first school shootings reflects on Tumbler Ridge grief
“What I do know is my legs weren’t working properly and I actually felt at the time like they were both broken.”
After half an hour, the feeling in his legs came back. Paramedics arrived, but he did not go to hospital.
A week and a half later, Misener told Global News he feels great. He said he also feels lucky — so lucky that he decided to play the lottery.
“It’s funny. That’s one of the first things I did the following day, went online and bought my lotto tickets,” he said.
While science says the shoes didn’t save him, he said he’s still glad he had them on.
“They will definitely be my lucky shoes,” he said. “You know, they’re not very flattering in terms of a fashion statement, but I have a newfound appreciation for Crocs for sure.”
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.