I didn’t go to Long Beach, New York expecting anything out of the ordinary.
It was New York Surf Week, and I was there to do what I always do, capture the energy, the movement, the surfers in the water. I had my DJI Inspire 2 up in the air early, keeping it low over the ocean, getting clean shots of the lineup and the shoreline.
At first, it felt like every other shoot.
Good light. Decent conditions. Lifeguards posted up. People in the water, hanging on to the last part of the day.
But after a while, something started to feel off.
Not in a dramatic way. Nothing that would make you pack up right away. Just a shift. The light got flatter. The colors started to dull out. The sky lost that clean separation it had earlier and started blending into something heavier.
It was subtle, but it was there.
I remember looking up for a second, then back down at the monitor.
And I kept filming.
The drone was hovering maybe 10 to 15 feet above the water, pointed toward the beach. Lifeguards were still out there, people still moving around like it was just another afternoon.
And then it happened.
No warning. No buildup.
The sky just snapped.
A lightning bolt came straight down and hit near the lifeguards.
From the drone’s view, it all unfolded instantly. A flash that filled the frame, followed by movement, fast, instinctive movement. People reacting before they even had time to understand what they were reacting to.
It wasn’t something you could process in the moment.
You just watched it happen.
After the strike, everything shifted.
The energy on the beach changed immediately. People started moving with purpose. That casual, end-of-day feeling was gone. In its place was tension, confusion, adrenaline.
Three lifeguards and others nearby felt the effects of the strike.
Some went down. Others were shaken.
But somehow, no one was seriously injured.
Even now, that part is hard to wrap your head around.
I brought the drone back and started going over what I had.
At first, it didn’t even feel real. It just looked like a flash on the screen. But the more I watched it, the more it settled in what actually happened, how close it was, how fast it all unfolded.
It wasn’t dramatic in the way movies make it feel.
It was quick. Sudden. Over before you even had time to react.
Not long after, the footage started getting attention.
I spoke with Greg Cergol from NBC New York and Caroline Gusoff from CBS New York, trying to explain what I saw from behind the controls.
I’ll be adding those clips here, because they capture that moment right after, when everything was still fresh.
Looking back on it now, it’s still hard to describe.
One minute, it was just another day shooting at the beach.
The next, everything changed.
And somehow, I was already in the air when it did. ⚡
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