If you've ever spent time taking pictures of the beautiful cypress trees at Lake Martin, you probably have at least one shot of it.
A much-photographed cypress tree at Lake Martin was struck by lightning and burned Friday night.
Mike Guillory says he was on his way home when he saw the tree burning. He quickly captured some video and images of the scene. It was pouring down rain, he said.
Here are some of the images he caught, all courtesy Mike Guillory:
Here's Guillory's post:
Ben Pierce, an Acadiana photographer well-known for his swamp images who also runs the non-profit Louisiana Swamp Base, and McGee’s Swamp Tours, shared Guillory's post on his Facebook today.
"This is about as sad as it gets from a South Louisiana swamp perspective. The iconic cypress tree at Lake Martin, the beautiful flat topped one at the end of the peninsula, the one that has represented outdoor tourism in our area for generations, and probably the most photographed cypress tree in the country, was was struck by lightning last night and caught fire," Pierce wrote.
"From a personal perspective, this was the tree I focused on in my earliest days of swamp photography, before I had a kayak to explore. I used it as the cover of my book, “Reflections of Lake Martin,” and always told it hello and thank you as I paddled past it. I pray that it wasn’t completely lost."
Here's his post:
Later Saturday, Pierce said he'd spoken with someone who had gone out to take a look at the damage to the tree.
"Word is, it’s very charred but still standing. The tree had been struck previously as evidenced by the scar on the trunk," Pierce told KATC. "I’d imagine that in the video, the fire was burning that dead wood. Being dried wood, it would have burned pretty quickly, thus saving the rest of the tree. Cypress are resilient and incredibly hardy. You see hollowed out and broken trees still surviving across the region."
