Seven Youth Group Members Hospitalized After Lightning Strike in Utah

Seven members of a Utah youth group were taken to the hospital after lightning struck the ground near where they were hiking Thursday, authorities said.

A group of young people from the Church of Jesus of Latter-day Saints from Salina, Utah, were hiking in eastern Sevier County when it began to rain at about 1:45 p.m. local time, the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office said.

The sheriff’s office said 50 of the children felt “the shock of lightning” that struck the ground near the group of hikers as rainwater pooled around them.

Seven of the youth group members had “some medical issues due to the electrocution,” the sheriff’s office said, and were taken to Salina hospitals by ambulance, where they were treated for their injuries.

Two of the children showed “some severe symptoms” and were airlifted to Primary Children’s Hospital in Lehi, the sheriff’s office said. He did not provide further information about his symptoms.

The other five were taken to two other hospitals, officials said.

None of the children taken to hospitals are expected to have life-threatening injuries, the sheriff’s office said.

The rest of the group was found and taken back to Salina, where they were reunited with their parents, according to the sheriff’s office. None of these children reported medical problems.

Sevier County is 167 miles south of Salt Lake City.