The fire chief of Wellington North says although a fire north of Mount Forest left a home unlivable, it could have turned out a lot worse.
Dave Guilbault said a rare December lightning strike sparked an electrical fire at the home Highway 6 near Letterbreen Road about 5:30 p.m. Sunday night.
He said damage adds up to $175,000 and the house will need major repairs to make it livable.
"I guess when the lightning hit, it went in the electrical box, the fire was burning in the wall at different outlets within the walls. We spent quite a bit of time pulling ceilings and walls to find the fires in different areas of the house," he said.
He added the good news was that they kept the fire from a nearby dairy barn. No one was hurt and the family is insured.
"I haven't had too many lightning strikes in December I'll tell that much, over my 47 years, I haven't seen that before," he said.
Firefighters from Arthur, Mount Forest, and West Grey were at the scene until about 10:30 p.m.
