Lightning Kills Louisiana Teenager in Deer Hunting Accident

In what could only be described as one of the cruelest acts of Mother Nature, a Louisiana teen has been killed while deer hunting.

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I can personally attest to the intensity and speed of the storm that blew through North Louisiana this past Saturday, October 18.

Sitting in the deer stand myself, I was watching a couple of deer as a lighting bolt lit the evening sky around 5:30 pm in the Arcadia area and as the deer immediately ran for cover, I was aware it was time to get down. My hunting buddy had beaten me to the decision and was bound for the truck as the first of the rain began to fall.

And though the rain was heavy at times, it was the intensity and frequency of the lightning that had both of us thankful to be back in the truck.

As it turns out, all the hunters who were out as that storm hit Louisiana weren't so lucky.

Around 8:30 pm on Saturday, deputies from the Union Parish Sheriff's Office, along with Bernice Fire Department, and Pafford EMS responded to Robert Welch Rd, near the Weldon community in Bernice, in reference to an injured person.

According to the report from UPSO, first responders were led into a remote wooded area where 17-year-old Colton Gauge Honeycutt, of Monroe, was located inside of an elevated deer stand.

Family members had become concerned when Honeycutt did not return from deer hunting earlier in the evening. Investigators believe Honeycutt was killed by a lightning strike when thunderstorms moved through the area, just before sunset Saturday evening.

Honeycutt was pronounced deceased at the scene by the Union Parish Coroner’s Office. This incident remains under investigation.