Struck Down By Lightning

Jeanerette, Louisiana:

Three people were killed Tuesday afternoon when a plane hit by lightning crashed into a neighborhood near the airfield here....

One official on the scene said that the plane approached the Jeanerette Le Maire Memorial Airport from the southeast and did a “touch-and-go” — touching down then ascending. The pilot intended to perform a “go-around” and approach the landing strip again when lightning struck the plane, he said....

Because of the lightning impact, the plane lost a wheel just outside the airfield’s fencing. It then scratched a tree and the roofs of two houses before clipping power lines. Seconds later it crashed into a mobile home occupied by Broussard, who reportedly was in his mid-70s. The plane caught fire and exploded.