Tradesmen have lucky escape after Liversedge lightning strike

A group of tradesmen had a lucky escape when they were almost hit by rubble from falling from a building struck by lightning.

The group were sheltering in a van in Holme Street, in Liversedge, when the masonry toppled on to their vehicle during a storm on Thursday.

Anton Edwards, who rents the building, said a tiler working at the site was also hit by a bolt of lightning but was uninjured.

He said he estimated the damage would cost up to £30,000 to repair, but said: “We are all fine, so that’s all that matters.”

Mr Edwards said: “[The tiler] had his foot hanging out of the door of his car and the lightning hit his foot.

“He’s fine, he just got straight back to work. He’s a Yorkshireman.”

Pictures from the scene show two cars parked next to the building covered in bits of rubble.

The men had been putting the finishing touches to a kitchen and bathroom showroom inside the building, which was due to open on Friday, Mr Edwards said.

A tenant had also been due to move into an upstairs flat on the same day, with a cleaner inside the property minutes before the incident at about 13:30 BST.

Mr Edwards said the property had been left without electricity, meaning the tenant had been unable to move in.

He admitted the lightning strike had “caused a bit of a hoo-ha”, but was confident everything would be back up and running within a week.

“We will battle through,” he added.

A West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue spokesperson confirmed three crews used an aerial ladder platform to assess the damage and make the building safe.