INDIANAPOLIS -
A lightning strike knocked out power to the Butler University campus Saturday afternoon.
The university reported on Twitter around 4:30 p.m. Saturday that lightning struck the power box on campus, causing the power outage. Police officers were dispatched to residential facilities on campus if anyone needed assistance.
A group of freshmen told Eyewitness News they lost university phone, Internet, cable service and power for a couple of hours. For many, it could not have come at a worse time.
"Everybody was just, like, came into the hallway and went 'Ahhhhh!'," said a female student.
They were in the middle of getting ready for a campus formal dance. Across campus, the storm put a temporary stop to a decades-old fundraiser, where students rode a teeter-totter to benefit Peyton Manning Children's Hospital.
Emergency phones were restored a short time after the outage and food service was resuming normal operations. Dinner on campus was being served in the Atherton Union dining hall from 5-6:30 pm.
Power was restored to all but four buildings by 6:30 pm.
A few blocks away from campus, lightning struck a house, starting a small fire in the attic. The fire was out before the fire department arrived.
But while none of the storms reached severe levels in Indiana Saturday, it's important to remember they can still be dangerous.
"Today, it wasn't even severe storms. They were just plain old thunderstorms, but any thunderstorm can contain lightning, can be deadly. It can be dangerous. It can be harmful," said Channel 13 Meteorologist Chikage Windler.
As deadly storms march across the Midwest, it is easy to dismiss the storm overhead.
"I think people become complacent, they think it is not going to happen to them," Windler said.
'Les Miserables' evacuated
The matinee performance of "Les Miserables" was canceled at Clowes Hall, but officials say the 8 p.m. show will go on as scheduled. Those who were evacuated from the afternoon show are asked to hold onto their tickets and visit the Clowes Hall, Broadway in Indianapolis or Ticketmaster website on Monday for more information.
A show scheduled for Saturday evening at Lilly Hall, however, has been canceled.
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