"Act of God": Lightning strike believed to spark house fire in Montgomery County

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) -- A lightning strike is believed to have sparked a fire in Montgomery County during Friday afternoon's severe storms. The Runyens are thankful for family and neighborhood support as they begin to pick up the pieces.

After evacuating, the couple actually called 911 themselves not long after a neighbor also did.

As severe storms rolled through, Montgomery County Fire crews pulled up to a Schwenksville home with heavy fire coming out of its roof. Officials believe it started after lightning hit the house.

"I was actually in the bed with my dog, cause he was shaking because of the storm," Emilie Runyen said. "And that's when it happened. We didn't much of it right away."

Runyen and her husband say it all happened quickly.

One moment, the two were working from home, the next, they heard a bang, smelled smoke and ran out of their house with their dog, Finn.

"We started looking around, cause we could smell smoke," she said. "My husband looked outside and saw just fire coming out.

"Fortunately, the homeowners were smart," Chief Brian Debus said. "They knew what to do, they did it. As soon as they realized they had a problem, they didn't hesitate. They got out right away and called us as soon as they evacuated."

Throughout the afternoon, firefighters went back inside to search for the couple's 13-year-old cat and also to recover personal belongs. As we were speaking with Runyen, firefighters brought out something she was hoping they could find.

Those are her engagement and wedding rings. The Runyens will celebrate three years married this fall.

"It was supplemental though," Runyen said. "I'm just glad we were both out and safe."

The investigation continues tonight to confirm if a lightning strike did indeed start this fire.

Thankfully there were no injuries from this fire.

In:
• Pennsylvania
• Thunderstorms
• Fire
• Montgomery County
• Lightning Strike
• House Fire