‘I just lost my best friend.’ Man mourns wife, daughter killed by lightning

A Broward County man said the wife and 2-year-old daughter he lost in a lightning strike in Margate Sunday afternoon brought “a beautiful light” into the lives of the people who knew them.

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Kam Glasgow said in a Facebook post that he lost his best friend after his wife, Kenya Glasgow and the couple’s daughter, Kennedi, were struck and killed by the lightning strike on a sidewalk in the 7900 block of Northwest First Street around 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

Compounding the tragedy, he said the couple’s surviving daughter lost her best friend. According to an Instagram post from Kenya Glasgow, the little girls are twins.

“I Thank You Both For Choosing Me As Your Husband And Father. Don’t worry about Kensli and I. I know you both have us covered for the rest of our lives. We will make you both our story and take it one day at time because I know you both are guiding us,” Kam Glasgow wrote.

The Miami Herald has reached out to Glasgow.

Margate police said that when officers and paramedics responded to calls of the mother and daughter lying on the sidewalk, they immediately began CPR and other life-saving measures.

Paramedics took Kenya Glasgow, 31, to North Broward Medical Center in Deerfield Beach, Margate police said.

The toddler was taken to Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, accompanied by a police escort.

They both died shortly after arriving at the hospitals, police said.

Kenya Glasgow was a program specialist for CAN Community Health, a nonprofit specializing in healthcare to those with HIV, according to her LinkedIn page.

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Late summer poses a heightened risk for lightning strikes in Florida, often referred to as the lightning strike capital of the world.

Sunday’s tragedy comes just days after a Florida Keys charter fishing boat captain was hospitalized after being hit by a lightning bolt on Florida Bay.

Capt. Richard “Rick” Stanczyk, 44, was offshore of Islamorada when lightning struck his boat.

Stanczyk, a member of a well-known family of Florida Keys anglers who own the iconic Bud N’ Mary’s Marina in Islamorada, remains in the hospital, but his condition is improving, his brother Nick, said in a social media post Sunday. Nick Stanczyk thanked a client who was on the boat for performing CPR on his brother before he was rushed to the hospital.

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agriculture Extension offers the following tips to stay safe during lightning season:

• If you hear thunder, seek shelter immediately and don’t go back outside until after 30 minutes pass since the last thunder roll you heard.
• A shelter should be a fully-enclosed space with a roof, walls and a floor, or a vehicle with a metal roof. Avoid pavilions, picnic shelters, tents, car ports and boats without cabins. Even when inside, stay away from windows and doors.
• And, don’t handle items that conduct electricity, like computers and corded telephones. Doing laundry, washing dishes, taking showers or handling any appliances that are connected to a home’s plumbing should also be avoided during a thunderstorm.
• If you are outside and shelter is not an option, stay low to the ground, crouching or on your hands and knees, but do not lie flat. Stay out of open areas, and avoid tall structures like towers, trees and poles.
• Stay away from water, including swimming pools, oceans, lakes, rivers and streams. If you’re in the woods, find the lowest clump of trees possible to avoid being underneath tall trees.
• If you’re on a boat and can’t get to shore right away, stay away from all metal objects and electrical equipment. This includes the radio, unless you are calling for help.
• If someone you are with gets struck by lightning, call 911 and perform CPR if the person’s heartbeat and breathing have stopped. Lighting-strike victims are safe to touch and do not carry an electrical charge.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Miami Herald staff writers Ana Claudia Chacin, Alex Harris and Sofia Saric contributed to this report.

Read more ‘I just lost my best friend.’ Man mourns wife, daughter killed by lightning

This story was originally published August 24, 2026 at 11:39 AM.