Lightning strike horror as woman and two dogs killed by freak bolt during storm
A WOMAN and two dogs were killed in a lightning strike during a thunderstorm.
Antonia Mendoza Chavez's body, along with those of her pets, were found on Wednesday morning.
Ms Chavez was understood to have been walking her dogs on the same trail she used every day.
CCTV footage shows her earlier that morning as she headed out from her home with the dogs.
Police and paramedics were pictured at the scene, with emergency vehicles parked alongside a grass embankment.
Emergency services were called to the area of Rimbank and Mines avenues, in Los Angeles County's Pico Rivera, around 8.50am local time (4.50pm BST).
Pico Rivera City Manager Steve Carmona warned local residents to stay indoors amid the stormy weather.
He said: "We should all be cautious with this activity that's in the area.
"We want everybody to be careful. There's a lot of instability in the air. Just be careful and do your best to stay indoors at this time."
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Ms Chavez was the first person in the county to die from a lightning strike this year.
Lightning deaths are rare in California, with only nine people dying from them since 2006.
The last time someone was killed by a lightning strike in Southern California was in 2014, according to Fox 11.
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The National Weather Service's Los Angeles branch said on Twitter that residents in San Gabriel Valley alerted residents to another downpour and "dangerous lightning" following the incident.
Resident Mary Perez told local broadcaster KABC: "I'm scared. I told my granddaughter and her friend, she's not walking to school, I'm taking her.
"I think more about the lightning. Not that I never thought about it. I didn't think it could really do that. It's just awful."