A householder was yesterday counting the cost of a lightning strike which wrecked his home.

The strike blew off the chimney and part of the roof, badly damaged a double fireplace and blew all the electrics at the Mount Pleasant Road, Sandys, house.

Owner Norwood Salaam was at home with wife Linda and daughters Siddeequah, 17, and Aquilah, 11, when a lightning bolt hit at the height of a thunderstorm on Tuesday night.

Mr. Salaam said: "It was like getting hit by a bomb -- and it looked like it as well.

"There was a lot of thunder and lightning. I heard a crack and I thought it was a branch off a tree -- then the whole house just blacked out.

"My daughters were standing next to the fireplace and they were screaming.

The place was plunged into darkness and full of smoke.

"But my daughters were lucky -- usually where they sit is right next to the fireplace. It's a double fireplace and it just split down the middle.'' The strike also brought down ceilings in two rooms after the double fireplace was split in two. The cost of the damage has still to be estimated -- but Mr.

Salaam said he feared it could be as high as $60,000.

The incident was one of the most serious in a night of chaos caused by the violent storm and torrential rain, which saw firefighters and Police swamped with calls about flooding.

Two roads were closed and businesses and homes flooded out by the heavy rain.

Firefighters battled the weather to put tarpaulins over the damaged section of roof to keep out the rain and removed the remains of the shattered chimney.

Mr Salaam said: "The strike blew the electrical switches right out of the wall.'' Lightning bolt wrecks home He added: "After they get the wiring assessed, I'll have a better idea of how long it will take to repair the damage.

"We can't live here until it's fixed because it's unsafe. It's weakened the structure and the whole fireplace will have to come down.'' Mr. Salaam added: "We are thankful for the fire service and the people who helped us. They did a lot of work in very bad weather and we're grateful to them for that.

"Nothing like this has happened to me before -- it's hard to believe all this damage could be done in the twinkling of an eye.''