Talon Jones did not see the lightning strike down on the highway, but he felt it.
As he was driving on U.S. 36 to Denver on Wednesday, Jones felt the boom and then saw a motorcyclist go down over the median.
“It was more like the bass of the sound hitting,” Jones said. “I just knew it was right there.”
Gary Missi, 46, of Longmont lost control of his yellow motorcycle on the westbound side of U.S. 36 near Church Ranch Road when lightning struck about 5:15 p.m.
Missi went over the median and landed on the eastbound side of the highway, police and witnesses said.
“The guy started losing control and kind of looked like he was not even driving,” Jones said. “Like he was already almost gone at that point and crashed into the center median. I looked at my side mirror and saw him flip over the median into the eastbound lane.”
Jones, 22, of Denver, and three other motorists pulled over to help Missi and called 911.
“As I was running up to him, I just kind of knew that he was not coming back,” Jones said. “There was no signs of life at all.”
One of the bystanders checked Missi for a pulse, but none was there.
Jones and the other motorists who stopped decided not to move Missi, who was propped against the median, because they did not want to break his neck.
A police officer and paramedics arrived moments later and tried to revive him, but they were not successful, Jones said.
The Jefferson County coroner has not determined Missi’s exact cause of death. It’s still not clear whether he was killed by a direct lightning strike or from some other trauma.
“It could have been that he was really startled (and crashed) or he could have just been killed by the lightning,” Jones said.
The lightning left a crater on the highway about 12 inches by 8 inches wide and 6 inches deep, police said.
When contacted at their home Thursday, Missi’s family members declined to speak directly to reporters but issued a public statement.
“Gary was a wonderful person, a devoted husband and a consummate family man,” wrote his sister-in-law, Julie Gehring. “Gary was the kind of person who would always go out of his way to help others, even if the situation put him at risk.”
Missi is survived by Mary Missi, his wife of 27 years, daughter Jamie, 25, and son Dustin, 19.
He often worked two jobs and had a paper route in order to support his family, the statement said. Missi was on his way home from work at the time of the accident.
E-mail messages may be left for Missi’s family at missi_family@yahoo.com.
Anyone wishing to donate may send contributions to the Gary Missi Memorial Fund at any 1st Bank.
Staff writer Felisa Cardona can be reached at 303-820-1219 or fcardona@denverpost.com.
