Man Struck By Lightning After Leaving Car To Warn Beachgoers About Storm

A New Jersey man was killed after getting struck by lightning on the beach. Seaside Park Sgt. Andrew Casole told the Asbury Park Press that 59-year-old Patrick Dispoto was leaving the beach with his girlfriend on Sunday (June 23) night when he decided to go back to warn a group of kids about an approaching thunderstorm .

Dispoto never made it back to his car. His girlfriend went to check on him and found him unconscious on the beach around 7:40 p.m. Paramedics attempted CPR and rushed him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead around 9 p.m. The autopsy report concluded that he died due to a lightning strike .

Authorities said that the beach was closed at the time, and there were no lifeguards on duty. Seaside Park officials said the town is working to upgrade its lightning detection system so beachgoers can be warned when dangerous storms are coming.

"We don't want to tell people when the storm is here; we want to tell people that the storm is coming so that they can stay ahead of it," Seaside Park lifeguard captain Jim Rankin told News 12 New Jersey . "In the event of a thunderstorm, the beach is a very dangerous place to be. So if you feel things like a wind shift, if it's fluttering back and forth between hot and cold, you see the clouds, you hear little rumbles of thunder — those are signs to get off the beach."