Teen burned by lightning strike takes it in stride

A 16-year-old boy burned by a lightning strike during this week's storm in Duluth is recovering from the frightening ordeal and even keeping his sense of humor about his close call.

Austin Shinler was sitting on a rock waiting for his grandfather at Bardon's Peak Tuesday when it started lightning. Shinler heard a loud noise, then was knocked unconscious after a lightning bolt hit the rock on which he was sitting. Shinler says when he woke up he felt like someone had hit over the head with a frying pan.

The Duluth News Tribune says the teen suffered burns on his right ankle and on the back of his legs - and his nearly new shoes were ripped apart. But, Shinler says he's doing OK. And when his father forgot his cell phone charger at the hospital, Shinler offered to charge the phone just by holding it.

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Information from: Duluth News Tribune

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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