Kayaker, 18, killed in freak lightning strike on Florida river

Kayaker, 18, killed in freak lightning strike on Florida river Michael Aidan Vargas was with his dad on the Blackwater River, about 170 miles west of Tallahassee, in Florida, when he was struck by lightning - his body was later recovered from the water An 18-year-old kayaker died after he was thrown into a river by a freak lightning strike in Florida. Michael Aidan Vargas was with his dad on the Blackwater River in Santa Rosa County, about 170 miles west of Tallahassee, on Sunday when the tragedy happened. His father and employees from the Navy's Morale, Welfare, and Recreation programme watched as Vargas fell into the water but they could not save him. They searched for the body and were joined by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) who were notified at 12.25pm. Dive teams scoured the river until his body was eventually found. His sister Marissa Vargas wrote a tribute on Instagram saying: "Rest in peace, my guardian angel." And she continued: "You were too pure for this world. I’m so grateful to experience the time I had with you. You will always be so loved and missed by everyone you met. I will always honour you and your life. "I encourage everyone to share pictures and stories of Aiden and talk about him as much as possible. I will be waiting for the day I get to see you again, but until then, you will always be in my heart. I love you, my little brother." “The FWC extends its deepest sympathies to the family and loved ones of Michael Aiden Vargas during this difficult time,” Florida FWC said in a statement. It is the second reported lightning death in the United States in 2026, according to the National Lightning Safety Council, with a 41-year-old man dying in April while walking through a parking lot in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. On average, since 2016, 17 people have died each year from lightning strikes.