Lightning Blasts Center

The two Winfield (Kan.) police dispatchers on-duty when a nearby lightning bolt knocked out their phone and radio equipment had a plan: they contacted the local phone company and had the 911 lines transferred to the EOC, where a back-up radio system was also located. The dispatchers were back at work about 10 to 12 minutes later, police chief Jerry DeVore said. Dispatchers returned to their center about a week later after repairs to the comm center gear were completed.