Lightning strike destroys house in northern Colorado

CARR, Colorado (KDVR) — A man in northern Colorado is hoping the saying that lightning never strikes twice is true, because lightning struck his rental home in Carr.

This spark set the house on fire and destroyed it.

“The wind was so strong that it pushed the fire so fast,” said Chas Mosby. “Eventually it reached the back of the house and the flames just erupted.”

Mosby’s heart still races when he talks about the moment his house went up in flames.

“I was in my garage. My buddy Caleb was visiting. We were working on his car and changing the oil. While we were changing the oil, a storm came through,” he said.

At that moment he heard a frightening noise.

“We heard a loud bang and a massive lightning strike right next to our house,” Mosby said.

No fire hydrants near a house fire caused by lightning

Video showed the flames around 9:30 p.m. Saturday as firefighters rushed to the scene to battle the blaze. Mosby told FOX31 firefighters were on the scene for nearly 10 hours.

“50 to 60 firefighters came to the house because there were no fire hydrants anywhere. So they had to bring a whole lot of firefighters and rescue crews because they needed a lot of water,” Mosby said. “The biggest blaze I’ve ever seen. It was like a big campfire, then a huge gust of wind pushed it toward us.”

Mosby and his friends also tried to put out the fire.

“The first thing we do is grab a bucket of water – we fill it up and pour water on the fire, and I call 911,” he said.

He also ran back into the house to turn off the propane tank.

“I called my landlord and he told me to go inside and turn off the propane,” Mosby said. “So I did. I covered my mouth and went inside. It was so smoky in there. Now I know what it feels like to breathe in smoke. My lungs were so tight.”

“Everything else is gone,” except his truck

Mosby said he moved into his new home in early June.

“Even though I was only there for a month, I have so many memories,” he said.

He hoped that the house, which had since burned down, would one day be his owner.

“We sat there for three hours and watched everything disappear. We saw a couple of propane tanks explode,” Mosby said.

The fire left him with some savings, his truck, and the clothes he was wearing.

“Everything else is gone,” he said.

Although his material possessions are lost, he is grateful that he got out safely and for the support he received.

“It happens. Sometimes there’s nothing you can do about it,” Mosby said. “Nature takes its course.”

Mosby is staying with his parents while he considers his next steps. A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help him rebuild.