A rare summer thunderstorm cast a bolt of lightning at swimmers and sunbathers at the famed Venice Beach in Los Angeles, killing a man and leaving several others injured.  Eight people were sent to hospital, with one in critical condition.

Witnesses said a single, small cell passed over the beach on what was otherwise a hot and sunny day in Los Angeles.  Suddenly, there was a flash and an almost instant loud boom. 

“This tragedy reminds us that we can take nothing for granted or underestimate the power of nature,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who also offered prayers for the victims of the lightning strike.

Venice Beach is a popular attraction in LA that’s bound to be crowded any day of the year.  It’s a perpetually run-down, funky area of Los Angeles known for its eclectic, bohemian atmosphere, open-air body builders, that rollerskating guy with the guitar who used to be in music videos in the 1980s and ‘90s and he’s still skating around, drug use, perverts, cafes and taquerias, free-range homeless, the horrible odors of pee and patchouli oil, et cetera.