WI Radio: Sports Host Struck By Lightning During Remote

Bill Michaels

Popular Wisconsin talk radio host Bill Michaels, whose late morning and early afternoon sports program is carried on stations all over Wisconsin, was struck by lightning Thursday in Eau Claire, an encounter detailed in a Facebook post by his wife, Sherry.

The post indicated he was treated locally and released, according to jsonline.com.

Michaels, whose "Bill Michaels Show" runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is based on WSSP 105.7 FM / 1250 AM The Fan in Milwaukee, had traveled to Eau Claire and was hosting his show remotely when his signal went dead mid-sentence in the first hour of his program. Producer Joe Zenzola took over thereafter, and CBS 58 personality Kevin Holden later joined the broadcast.

Michaels had been hosting from a patio at Wild Ridge & Mill Run Golf Course, site of the Junior Achievement Golf Outing, when a small cell of thunderstorms moved into the area just as Michaels had finished an interview with newly minted Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Kramer. He detailed the incident at the outset of his Friday show, still broadcasting from Eau Claire.

"I was sitting at the table ... as Joe and I were having this conversation. A lightning strike had taken place. It wasn't directly to me, but it had taken place in the area. There was enough energy - I don't know how to put it - but it hit me. It jolted me, I guess, is the best way to put it. It burned my arms, burned my fingers and found out later it had blown out through my shoe."

Michaels stayed in a hospital for four hours but was given a clean bill of health.

"The only remnants I have left over from this is my finger is completely swollen up like a blister from a burn, and I need a new pair of shoes," he said. "That's about it. ... I figure I've got my one-in-a-million shot out of the way."