A MUM today relived the moment when a lightning bolt threw her across the front room of her home.

Sandra Ward's mother was left listening to the sound of her terrified daughter's screams when the lightning hit as the two women talked on the telephone at about 3.45pm yesterday.

It struck the gable end of the flats in Parkwood Road, Queen's Park, Blackburn, damaging tiles and knocking the electricity out.

Sandra, 29, said: "I was talking to my mum on the phone and the next thing I knew the phone fell out of my hand and I flew back.

"Luckily the settee was behind me so I had a soft landing."

Sandra, who lives in a flat on the middle floor of the block below an empty property, picked herself up and ran outside to see what had happened. She could smell smoke and said she "freaked out".

"I didn't know what had happened. I knew it had been raining but I hadn't heard any thunder or lightning," she said.

"I looked outside and saw the roof and that was when I realised."

Meanwhile Sandra's mum, Ann Coleman, of Queen's Road, Blackburn, was still connected on the phone and could hear Sandra screaming. She rushed round to see what had happened.

Sandra was seen by an ambulance crew but did not need medical treatment.

Her two oldest children, Matthew, 12, and eight-year-old Nicola were out at the time and she had just put her 22-month-old baby, Karl, to bed when the lightning struck. She said: "It was lucky because otherwise he would have been on my knee and got the shock as well."

Leading firefighter Tony Crook, of Blackburn Fire Brigade, said: "It hit the gable end of the property and took the slates off but luckily it didn't catch fire.

"We used a ladder to get into the property and made it safe, moving any dangerous tiles."

Blackburn with Darwen Council were visiting Sandra's home today to see what damage was caused by the lightning strike.

Weather forecasters were today predicting more heavy rain as well as the possibility of storms with more thunder and lightning.

A spokesman said: "There are definitely going to be showers and there is a small risk of storms, thunder and lightning over East Lancashire."

A 24-year-old man was taken to hospital with back injuries when his Ford Sierra spun out of control in driving rain on the A59 Longsight Road near Clayton-le-Dale shortly after midnight last night.

He was taken to Blackburn Royal Infirmary, but his injuries were not thought to be serious.

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