Pet missing after lightning struck home

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - Elizabeth Johnson of Foley was her kitchen Monday afternoon when lightning struck her house, setting fire to her attic. Now, her cat has run away from home.

“The loss of the home is terrible, but it can be replaced. No one got hurt. I'm just missing my cat, and I really want him back with me,” Johnson said.

She had just put a pot of water onto the stove when she heard a loud boom that sounded like a bomb. She said her smoke detector went off, and that’s when she knew there was a problem.

“When I went to reset it, I noticed smoke was on the ceiling and that smoke was already coming into the house,” said Johnson.

“I live two doors down, and Elizabeth came running over to my house saying her home was on fire,” said Johnson’s neighbor, Johnny Innzer. "I went to the back door of the house and the smoke was already there, about two feet off the ground."

Innzer called the Foley Fire Department while he and Johnson watched the flames engulf her home.  

“We get a lot of lightning storms in Foley but this strike sounded louder and closer than normal. She wanted to go back in to get her cat but I wouldn’t let her,” Innzer said.

“They won’t let us back in the house because all the sheetrock is caving in now. Things are just collapsing. I have half a garage of what they hulled out here yesterday, and that’s about all we have left,” Johnson said.

Johnson and her husband are staying in an apartment. She said right now, she is focusing on finding her 19-year-old Tabby cat named Sheba. We're told she is wearing a white collar.

If you happen to see her, send a message to Report it at Fox10tv.com or call Johnson (850) 384-0136.