Overview
- A man swimming at Umina Beach on Saturday was hit by a lightning bolt and pulled from the water by bystanders just before 4pm.
- Witnesses and emergency alerts say bystanders moved the victim off the sand in a beach buggy while NSW Ambulance and police responded and transported him to Gosford Hospital.
- Authorities have not released the victim's identity or detailed medical updates but reporting says he was later moved to a Sydney hospital and described as in critical but stable condition.
- A witness described the strike as coming out of the blue with clear local skies while a storm was visible toward Palm Beach, and the Bureau of Meteorology says tall thunderheads can send lightning 15–30 kilometres from a storm.
- Beaches were unusually busy on the warm day and more thunderstorms are forecast for New South Wales, so officials and beachgoers should be alert to sudden, distant lightning risks.