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TagsBY BOB HOLT
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Some people have said that lightning doesn’t strike in the same place more than once because that place is usually gone after lightning hits it the first time. But 65-foot tall, over 100-year old Margate veteran Lucy the Elephant is hurting, but still standing.
NorthJersey.com reports that Lucy suffered damage from a lightning strike on Sunday that took out electrical, computer, alarm and four air conditioning units, and might cost between $10,000 to $100,000 to fix.
Lucy the Elephant had been hit by lightning before in 2006, and the Courier Post reports that strike may have lessened the damage from this one. The first lightning strike destroyed Lucy's riding carriage, and the Elephant’s keepers installed a lightning rod system that would divert any surges of electricity into the ground and prevent the attraction from catching fire.
Lucy has been insured, but she hasn’t been all that lucky. Lucy was dropped by Lloyd's of London due to the 2006 lightning strike and another accident in 2009 when the grounds had been rented and a sudden wind gust lifted up a tent and smashed its pole into Lucy's hind quarters.
Philly.com reports that the old girl weighs 90 tons, and she was built in 1881 to attract people to what was known as South Atlantic City at the time. Lucy has since seen duty as a restaurant, a tavern, a house, and a tourist attraction.Lucy will turn 130 years old in two weeks.
