A lightning storm in Georgeville has left a couple and their son without their home, their possessions, and their pet. 30-year-old BJ Michael Brodhurst was at work when he learned his house was on fire. But it wasn't a candle or an electrical device that caused it. Unbelievably, two lightning strikes in close proximity to each other sent his home up in smoke. Courtney Menzies has this story.

Sometime just before 2, this house in Georgeville burst into flames - not far from the George Price Highway.

At 6:35 this morning when the owner, 30-year-old BJ Michael Brodhurst left home with his common-law wife, the house was still standing - he returned home to find this rubble and wreckage.

Brodhurst knew that they didn't leave any electrical devices on, nor was any fire left lit. But his brother in law, who witnessed the incident, said it was a freak event: a lightning strike caused the fire that destroyed their house and killed their dog.

Bryan Guzman, Eyewitness
"The first lightning struck and when I reached, all I could see was smoke in the house. The first thing I noticed was that the back room started blazing when I tried to reach and see if I could do something, there was no chance. I called my sister and told her that her house was burning, I didn't know what to do, I don't know if I should call police or what, I was so frightened. And when I realized the fire was just blazing and when I tried to run into the house, the tank blew. I didn't have the chance to run in because of all the smoke and fire. And then when I realized the flames, it just happened too fast."

"The first strike hit the tree and the dog was there and it struck the dog and the dog died. That was the light one. But the hard one, the second one, it was a hard one, it struck the room in the back and then the smoke started coming out and things started to get serious."

And the fire took everything the small family owned, including gifts and decorations that were meant for their son's birthday. Now, they're turning to the public for help.

Bryan Guzman, Eyewitness
"They lost everything because my nephew's clothes, my sister's clothes, my brother in law's clothes. The thing is my nephew's birthday was just on Monday. Saturday right here they were going to celebrate it. All the stuff for the little party they were going to have for him is gone, everything is gone. He just got some new stuff that my nephew's dad just got for him. Everything is gone."

"All the washing machine, the fridge, the bed, the clothes, everything. My sister doesn't have any underwear."

"They could call me or call my sister. My number is 608-1088. And then the next one is 627-6361."

Again, those numbers are 608-1088 and 627-6361. A bank account number will be posted on our Facebook page.