Lightning Strike Sparks House Fire Devastating One Florida Family

TARPON SPRING, FL. – When storms rolled through the Tampa Bay area on Sunday, lightning strikes hit several neighborhoods and homes.

A homeowner and his family in Tarpon Springs were hit directly and lost everything.

The Stephenson family, Adam, Kailyn, Asher and Ezra escaped unharmed from their home after lightning struck the roof of their home and started a fire in the attic

“We search the contents of our house to see what can be saved or thrown away,” said Kailyn Stephenson.

To make matters worse, COVID-19 has caused a financial setback for Stephenson insurance and its homeowners.

“A terrible situation is made worse by the fact that due to last year’s income loss and financial problems, our insurance has expired and we have no insurance coverage. We were in the process of acquiring this as our financial situation was improving, but too little too late, ”Stephensen said in a Facebook post. “Our HOA covers the structural, but renovation and demolition, electrics, plumbing, air conditioning, kitchen and bathroom, flooring, paint, etc. will be entirely on us.”

Photos from inside the Stephenson house

The Stephensons have compiled a list of immediate and future needs to get you back on track:

Clothes & shoes– We have high hopes that our clothes and shoes can be restored through repeated washes and logs as they have only suffered smoke and water damage. At this point we would like to ask you to hold back any clothing donations until we know what we are working with as we are already so busy and space is very limited.

furniture– While we will be 100% in dire need of EVERYTHING including appliances, flooring, furnishings, etc. We will be without a home of our own until next year.

Toys– we are trying to save what we have from our children and we will absolutely need donations in the future. Again, since we are being evicted and staying with my mother, we have limited space and we try to flood her house and try to be mindful and considerate even though we are welcomed with open arms.

eat– Such a great blessing, but we don’t have any refrigerator space and the freezer is full of breast milk we saved from our house. If we can find a way to accommodate meals and food donations. If someone can donate and deliver a refrigerator to Hudson, it will change EVERYTHING.

storage– If someone has storage connections that can either give us a significant discount or donate a unit to store what we can keep, that would be incredible. Our (fully packed) garage was almost undamaged and we are desperately trying to save as much as possible. This will likely be 6 months of storage.

Prayers– please keep lifting us up in prayer. This is unfathomable and my worst fear. Our 4 year old is absolutely devastated and between the accident that totaled our car in May and now I’m sure he has some trauma to deal with. Adam and I are also experiencing PTSD, which I can imagine is to be expected.

Financially– that is by far our greatest need. A dire situation is made worse by the fact that due to last year’s loss of income and financial difficulties, our insurance has unfortunately expired and we have no insurance coverage. We were in the process of acquiring this as our financial situation was improving, but too little too late. Our HOA covers the structural, but renovation and demolition, electrics, plumbing, air conditioning, kitchen and bathroom, flooring, paint, etc. are all taken care of by us.

job– When, in about 6 months, licensed electricians, plumbers, air conditioning technicians, etc. are ready to give their time and services to help us rebuild, we would be forever grateful and forever connected.

“We’re so grateful for the tremendous reach for tangible objects,” said Stephenson.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the Stephensons financially and you can help by clicking here.

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