WOODSTOCK, New Brunswick (CBC News/CNN) – A Canadian man was giving his father of the bride speech at his daughter’s wedding when he was struck by lightning.
J.P. Nadeau and his family thought the apple orchard in their backyard was the perfect venue for his youngest daughter’s wedding.
But when Nadeau took the stage July 8 to give his speech as the father of the bride, a storm rolled in.
"I was looking at the people, and I was looking at my daughter and her husband… Back behind me, where I couldn't see, was a wall of water that was coming across the field. The rain was incredible, but I mean, I couldn't see it,” Nadeau said.
Just as Nadeau called his new son-in-law a lucky guy, lightning struck.
"My daughter was standing right there, and she said she saw a lightning bolt come down and hit behind me there. I had a microphone, and that jumped into the sound system and my hand just all lit up. I saw the spark of lightning. It was so bright in my hand. I couldn't believe it,” Nadeau said.
The strike gave his family quite a scare, Nadeau says, but he is uninjured and unmarked, aside from a black scorch mark on one finger where he believes the electricity may have left his body.
"They were worried for me. They thought I was going to drop dead, you know, because it was a very close hit,” Nadeau said.
Once everyone realized Nadeau was uninjured, the wedding continued.
Nadeau says he’s happy to be alive and thankful he was able to take part in his daughter’s special day.
This was not Nadeau’s first close call. Two years ago, he was on a cruise ship that caught fire in the Atlantic and had to be rescued by the British Royal Air Force.
Copyright 2017 CBC News, Maggy Thomas via CNN. All rights reserved.
