Imagine driving down a rural road when you hear a loud BOOM! Your car shuts off and coasts to a stop. You look around and don’t see any immediate danger. Instead, you find a huge hole burned into your roof. Car pieces, such as your exhaust and bumper are scattered across the road.

An Illinois family lived through this nightmare. According to the local Sheriff’s news release, “Williamson County Sheriff’s Office Deputies responded to the report of a vehicle struck by lightning.” Where: Illinois State Route 13. When: 5:42 PM on March 6th.

“Deputies responded to the eastbound lane of Illinois Route 13 near Illinois Route 166 to discover three family members outside of a vehicle which had sustained a direct lightning strike.” Don’t worry, everyone was alright. They were likely a bit rattled, but had quote the story to tell.

“The three family members were uninjured and reported hearing a loud gunshot type noise while traveling. The vehicle immediately filled with smoke after being struck.”

The aftermath of the Illinois Ford Edge struck by lightning

Can a vehicle keep rolling after a direct lightning strike? Possibly, but more likely it will be damaged. “The lightning strike disabled the vehicles electrical system, exploded the rear bumper and exhaust system which was scattered in the roadway, and left a visible hole in the roof of the vehicle.”

The bumper and exhaust fell off? There’s a good chance the rear bumper was the part of the vehicle closest to the ground. If that was the path of least resistance for the lightning, that’s the path to the ground it would have taken. The power of the lightning strike could easily blow the bumper clean off.

So how did the very lucky family inside the Ford Edge survive the direct lightning strike? It’s likely the vehicle’s metal skin acted as a “Faraday cage” and conducted the electricity around the outside of the car. If you want to know how this works, check out the explainer video embedded below: