Video shows 'freak' moment lightning strikes boy on NSW beach

It comes after families had been enjoying a hot Australia Day as the mercury climbed above 30C.

The storm had been brewing in the distance in the late afternoon, witness Simon Young said, but it wasn’t until an “almighty crack” rang out and a family rushed to the side of the young boy that he realised what had happened.

“It was just like a shock out of nowhere and at the time I looked out to the inlet and everyone was unaware of what had occurred,” Young told 9News.

“A young child just fell to the ground in the water and his family and siblings ran to his aid to grab him as fast as possible.”

The schoolboy was dragged to the sand and Shellharbour Surf Life Savers immediately responded.

He said he could not commend Shellharbour Surf Life Savers enough for their “immediate response”.

Lifeguard Byron Vinkovic was first on the scene and said he was “really proud” of his team for the care they gave the boy before he was taken to Sydney’s Westmead Hospital, where he remains in a critical but stable condition.

“We had been monitoring a storm cell that was moving over Wollongong but still hadn’t reached us yet,” Vinkovic told 9News.

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“All six lifeguards did an absolutely amazing job. It was a rapid response from lifeguards and emergency services.

“I could not praise them enough.”

The boy had scars and burns on his chest when he was pulled unconscious and not breathing from the water.

Fellow lifeguard Chris Holme said it was a “one in a million” situation.

“All our hearts go out to the young boy and their family and hope they are on the road to recovery.”

The incident was one of thousands across NSW beaches yesterday after nearly one million people flocked to the state’s beaches for the Australia Day public holiday.

Surf Life Saving NSW said 10,000 preventative actions were performed and there were 41 major incidents its members dealt with.