Golfers, beachgoer hit by lightning strikes as thunderstorms slam popular Florida vacation spot

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. – Three people were hit by lightning in Florida on Friday afternoon, leaving a young man hospitalized. 

A man in his 20s was injured by a lightning strike while standing in the ocean off New Smyrna Beach on Friday afternoon, and then two more people were hit while playing golf a short time later. 

A member of the New Smyrna Beach Patrol told FOX 35 Orlando that the man hit on the beach was from Colorado. 

The first incident happened when a lightning bolt struck the water near a man on the beach, but with water being a conductor of electricity, the man still suffered an electrical shock from the blast, according to the New Smyrna Beach Fire Department.

New Smyrna Fire, Volusia County Fire and Edmonton EMS arrived to find the man unconscious and in cardiac arrest. 

Fire officials said he was quickly taken to a local hospital, where they were able to regain his pulse. 

The man's condition is unknown.

A short time later, two people playing golf at the Club at Venetian Bay golf course were also indirectly hit by lightning, the New Smyrna Fire Department said. 

It's unclear if the two golfers were injured, as they declined EMS transport to the hospital, New Smyrna Fire confirmed. 

New Smyrna Fire Department spokesperson Adam Sarwi told FOX Weather it's not normal to have three people hit by lightning strikes in one day, but "it is not uncommon when someone is struck by lightning that there are others during the same storm."

Florida is considered the lightning capital of the U.S. with nearly 300 lightning strikes per square mile per year, according to recent studies.