Lightning strikes Cocoa church serving as precinct; battery backup lets voting continue

Not even lightning could stop the march to the ballot box.

Voters and volunteers at Victory Baptist Church in Cocoa were jolted with a surprise Tuesday as a bolt of lightning struck the sanctuary doubling as a precinct in the primary election . No one was injured and while the lights flickered at the site, at 242 Capron Road, the ballot box powered on, said officials with the Brevard County Supervisor of Elections office.

“Precinct 113’s equipment is on battery backup so it was uninterrupted,” said Kimberly Boelzner, communications director for the supervisor's office.

It was not immediately known how many voters had cast ballots at the church.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. today for Brevard County's primary elections.

J.D. Gallop is a criminal justice/breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Gallop at 321-917-4641 or jgallop@floridatoday.com . Twitter: @JDGallop.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Lightning strikes Cocoa church serving as precinct; battery backup lets voting continue