WINDERMERE, Fla.,None — Four million-dollar Windermere homes caught fire in just 24 hours and firefighters believe they were all caused by lighting strikes. A Monday morning fire in Windermere consumed a home on Valhalla Way (see map) . The fire caused the roof to collapse on the nearly 6,000 square-foot home.
AT THE SCENE: See Images | Raw Video
Orange County Fire Rescue communications received a 911 call at 9:52am Monday, reporting flames shooting from the roof of the home. The first fire unit to arrive on scene reported the home was 50 percent involved with flames and smoke was coming from the 5,920 square-foot, two-story home.
Skywitness 9 HD flew over the massive house fire in Keene's Point around 10:00am. Firefighters were able to put out the blaze, but the home was destroyed.
Monday's fire occurred approximately 15 hours after intense lightning started three house fires in the same area Sunday night. Fire officials believe that lightning from the same storm struck the house, which smoldered overnight.
The three Windermere homes that were damaged Sunday, after they were struck by lightning, are on Cragside Lane, Hampshire Court, and Nobleton Drive. A firefighter received a minor injury fighting one of the Windermere fires on Sunday.
"You could here all the bangs and people were looking, coming outside," neighbor Alex Torresola said. "We seen the first house on fire, five, ten minutes later we come back out here and I see my neighbor's house on fire."
Two of Torresola's neighbors' homes were struck by lightning at the Lakes of Windermere, less than two miles from Keene's Pointe.
"You never know. Maybe you're sleeping when something like this happens," neighbor Alfonso Rodriguez said.
The homeowners didn't realize their $1.3 million home was struck by lightning until it was too late. They may have missed an important warning sign, because the smell of smoke lingered in the neighborhood from the earlier fires.
Now, other residents are talking about prevention, such as installing lightning rods onto their homes to dissipate a strike. But one local electrician told WFTV there are no guarantees and a lightning protection system can run several thousand dollars.
"I've never seen anything like it. It just happened so quick," Torresola said.
Another million-dollar Keene's Point home was destroyed Sunday. The other two house fires on Sunday didn't cause as much damage. Lightning is believed to be the cause of all of them.
Previous Stories: August 22, 2010: Lightning To Blame For 3 House Fires
WFTV
