This browser does not support the Video element.
Lightning strike survivors reunite with strangers who saved their lives
A Winter Garden couple is sharing their story for the first time after surviving a lightning strike that left one of them without a pulse and the other unable to move.
WINTER GARDEN, Fla. - A Winter Garden couple is sharing their story for the first time after surviving a lightning strike that left one of them without a pulse and the other unable to move.
Couple shares survival story for the first time
What they're saying:
Aaron and Clare Walenga were walking along the West Orange Trail on Sept. 2 when lightning struck nearby. Body camera video from first responders shows the couple on the ground with severe injuries.
Clare Walenga was unconscious and had no pulse, while Aaron Walenga was conscious but unable to move.
"I couldn't move my legs. I couldn't move my limbs. I couldn't respond the way I wanted to," Aaron Walenga said. "I wanted to get to Clare and I just couldn't get up. I couldn't really move, and I was in the worst pain of my life."
Bystanders rushed in to help
Several strangers immediately called 911 and began CPR on Clare Walenga before first responders arrived.
"The first thing I saw was she was blue. I've never seen anybody that color in my life before," said Michael Sachetti-Weyand, who helped perform CPR.
The rescuers say they acted on instinct, and the experience has created a lasting bond with the couple.
"I don't know how to describe the feeling," Tiffany Roby said. "Thank God was here and He helped get us through this."
Rare but dangerous event
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 37 million lightning strikes hit the ground in the United States each year. The agency says the odds of being struck by lightning in a given year are less than one in a million.
Aaron Walenga said he believed he might not survive.
"I thought I was going to die," he said. "It was a very peaceful thing for me. I had accepted it."
Looking ahead
What's next:
About two weeks after the strike, the Walengas reunited with the strangers who helped save their lives.
Clare Walenga said she is grateful for the chance to return home to her family.
"I get another chance. I am here, that I get to be your wife and the mom to my three precious children," she said. "It's because of your actions that you took. So I'm just really grateful for that."
The couple says they plan to return to the West Orange Trail when they're ready. Their rescuers say they'll continue to stay in touch, both on and off the trail.
The Source: This story was written based on information shared by Winter Garden Fire Rescue, the Winter Garden Police Department, lightning strike victims Aaron and Clare Walenga, and Good Samaritans Michael Sachetti-Weyand and Tiffany Roby, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.