Florida row team receives lightning detector donation, months after deadly strikes on Lake Fairview

ORLANDO, Fla. - A Central Florida rowing team is getting a much-needed donation after two boys were killed by a lightning strike on Lake Fairview in September.

Two boys, Gavin Christmas and Langston Rodriguez-Sane, were both killed on September 15 during a routine middle school rowing practice on Lake Fairview. The lightning bolt caused their boat to capsize. Following the tragedy, several coaches that use Lake Fairview for their row teams, including Edgewater High School, expressed the need for lightning detectors at the lake.

Paul Bybee, CEO of Xtreme Research Corporation, caught wind of the story and wanted to help. His company's lightning detectors are made in Pinellas and Pasco County. He decided to send the Edgewater crew team a donation.

"This was right down the road, it was closer to home," Bybee said. "I kind of felt like it was something that could have happened to anybody around here."

"The good folks from Xtreme research saw your original piece and said we would love to donate something to help you out. I had a nice conversation with the owner of the company, and they sent us a Storm Pro2, which we've added to an arsenal of things," said Edgewater crew coach Bill Zack.

Coach Zack said the team hasn't used it a ton because there haven't been a lot of storms, but said the first time he used it, "[it] did a good job of letting us know how far away lightning strikes were and what direction they were moving."

The device will let you know if the storm is moving towards, away, or parallel to your position. It also detects electromagnetic emissions from individual lightning strokes and can be detected at long range.

Bybee, a soccer coach himself, told FOX 35 News he knows the importance of keeping teams safe while playing the sport they love. He hopes more sports teams continue to take extra steps to be safe.

As for lightning detectors at Lake Fairview, we're told that's still in progress.