An American tourist died while on the trip of a lifetime with his girlfriend in Australia, after lightning hit a tree near their tent.
Sam Beattie, 24, of New York, was on a gap year with his partner Michele Segalla, 23. The pair were camping at the top of Mt Warning, near Byron Bay, New South Wales, when lightning struck early on Tuesday morning.
Police believe the lightning first hit their tent, then touched Beattie's feet, killing him instantly. Segalla, who suffered head and neck injuries, spent three hours next to Beattie's body, crying as she waited for help.
Two teenage hikers on the mountain heard Segalla crying around 3:50am, the Herald Sun reported. One hiker went for help and another performed CPR, to no avail.
Segalla was taken to Murwillumbah Hospital with head and neck injuries and in a state of shock. Beattie's body has now been retrieved from the mountain, according to the Tweed Daily News.
The couple were eight weeks into a gap year, driving around Australia in a van. Beattie, a University Of Denver graduate, and Segalla, a Fordham University alumnus, had been hired at music deals website Popmarket in October, as a customer service representative and an analyst, respectively.
Beattie's father arrived in Australia on Tuesday afternoon on a pre-booked trip and was informed of his son's death.
Emergency services were called to the Wollumbin National Park near Murwillumbah on the New South Wales north coast around 4.50am.
Tweed Byron Detective Superintendent Wayne Starling said lighting struck a tree next to the couple's tent and Beattie "was killed pretty much instantly".
"It appears the lightning may have touched the male's feet in the tent and sadly it killed him," he said.
He described Beattie's death as "extraordinary circumstances" and said Segalla was very lucky to be alive.
Beattie's LinkedIn profile states he was employed remotely at Popmarket. He had previously worked at UBS as a market risk analyst, and had interned at IPS. Beattie, a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity since 2010, had previous marketing experience, having received a Bachelor's degree in finance and economics.
In 2013, Beattie had travelled to Seville, Spain, to study international finance. He had listed international travel and adventure as part of his interests on LinkedIn, as well as alpine skiing, waterboarding, hiking and 1970s classic rock.
An Instagram video of Beattie attests of his adventurous character and shows him with his foot in a splint, sliding down a waterfall at Currumbin Waters in Queensland. "Yeah doc, staying off it as much as I can," he wrote in the caption.
Beattie had posted a photo of himself having a glass of wine with Segalla just a week ago, on the Gold Coast.
Segalla graduated from Fordham University with a 3.503 GPA last year, according to her LinkedIn profile. She had spent a semester abroad in Seville, Spain in 2013 - the same year as Beattie.
There, she studied international business and culture. Segalla had previously interned at UBS and later worked at Davidson Kempner Capital Management in New York City, then at finance advisor Duff & Phelps. Segalla joined Popmarket in October, the same month as Beattie.
The pair had embarked on a trip to Australia for a gap year. Beattie had posted a picture on Instagram of their bags, as well as a selfie of them on the plane with their neck pillows.
"Fit our lives into 5 bags (minus 2 neck pillows). Next stop, Sydney!" Beattie wrote in the caption.
The pair landed on Queensland's Gold Coast early last month. They had visited Stradbroke Island, Point Lookout and Rainbow Beach and had recently arrived in Byron Bay.
Segalla was placed in the care of a "support network", an emergency services chaplain told the Gold Coast Bulletin. She had minor injuries and her hair was burned by the heat of the lightning.
Two teenage hikers from Queensland tried to resuscitate Beattie for more than an hour Tuesday, Starling said.
"It was traumatic circumstances but they did their best," he said.
Starling said 35 emergency services workers from National Parks and Wildlife Services, Rural Fire Service, NSW Ambulance, SES and police were involved in the rescue operation.
A spokesperson from the NSW State Emergency Service confirmed to Daily Mail Australia volunteers from the Tweed Heads, Tweed Coast and Murwillumbah units were on the scene.
At about 9.20am emergency services officers were climbing Mt Warning in conditions not suitable for an air rescue, the Tweed Daily News reported.
The Bureau of Meteorology said the immediate threat of severe thunderstorms had passed NSW but would continue to be monitored.