District of Columbia fire and emergency medical service officials report that Thursday evening, around 7 pm, four people were injured from a lightning strike near the White House. An elderly couple died from the hit.
The victims, two men and two women, were taken to a local hospital. They were found in Lafayette Square Park, in an area with several trees, near the statue of Andrew Jackson, in the vicinity of Pennsylvania Avenue.
The injured were initially assisted by members of the US Secret Service and the US Park Police, who were first on the scene before paramedics arrived.
Vito Maggiolo, a spokesperson for the DC Fire Department, reported the incident at an evening news conference.
Donna Mueller, 75, and James Mueller, 76, visiting from Wisconsin, succumbed to their injuries.
The last time someone died from lightning in Washington, DC was in 1991, when 11 people took shelter under a tree and one died.
A Fox News weather camera captured an incredible lightning strike around the same time the four people were struck near the White House.
See video here: