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Victim Recalls Lightning Strike As State Park Site Reopens

HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) — A Baltimore woman who nearly died from a lightning strike at a state park observation tower is recalling her ordeal as the site reopens more than 10 months later.

Twenty-two year-old Mollyann Hart of Baltimore says she still has headaches, memory loss and permanent damage from a burned retina in her right eye stemming from the incident June 18 at Washington Monument State Park near Hagerstown.

Hart and her sister Lauren Bognovitz say they were sharing a snack inside the stone structure during a rainstorm when the lightning struck with a force that blew them outside.

Bognovitz says she administered CPR to revive her sister after Hart stopped breathing.

Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Karis King says the monument reopened Thursday after repairs to the damaged structure.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

 

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