Allen, also a Denver resident, was treated for burns on a leg and toe at Broward General Medical Center. Six others were injured in the incident and complained of dizziness. Witnesses said that storm clouds formed quickly around noon Saturday, just before a lightning bolt hit the group. Anderson was struck on top of the head while standing up and did not have a pulse when emergency units arrived at the beach. Allen had been sitting just a few feet from Anderson and was injured as the lightning passed through the sand.
Lightning kills more people in Florida than in any other state.
Colorado is ranked second in lightning deaths. About 40 people a year are struck by lightning in Florida and, of those, about 10 die, according to the National Weather Service in Miami. Anderson's survivors include his mother and a younger brother, Cameron Taylor, both of Glenwood Springs. After high school, Anderson held various jobs before enrolling at Metropolitan State College in Denver. He started at the Camera in 1997 and convinced editors to let him work there without pay as an intern while he was a college student.