The family of an elderly man severely injured by a lightning strike at the St. Augustine Pier is now grappling with growing medical debt after learning that insurance will not cover two emergency life flights that helped save his life.
Philip Schuyler, who is in his 80s, was struck while standing on the pier with his wife and daughter. The lightning entered his body, exited through his hands and feet, and threw him violently to the ground, causing serious injuries to his heart and face.
His relatives released a news picture of him in a hospital bed with a smile on his face despite his injuries.
He was first rushed by helicopter from the scene to a local hospital.
A second airlift transported him to a burn and trauma unit in Gainesville, where he remains in intensive care. The family has now been told that insurance will not cover the cost of either flight—charges expected to total tens of thousands of dollars.
“These flights were critical. Without them, he likely wouldn’t have survived,” they shared on a GoFundMe page that has raised roughly $4,700.
The medical emergency has left the Schuyler family reeling—not only emotionally, but financially. With no local support system and urgent needs for both short- and long-term care, they are struggling to cover ICU expenses, neurological and cardiac treatment, and rehabilitation.
Philip’s wife, Diana, has advanced dementia and was not physically harmed in the strike, though she was only steps away when it happened. Philip had been her sole caregiver. Now, he is unable to care for himself.
The family launched the GoFundMe campaign seeking $250,000 to address the rising costs.
They had been holding the funds while waiting for an insurance determination—but with the denial confirmed, donations will now go directly toward the airlift bills.
“This is one of the hardest things we’ve ever faced, and we don’t know what the road ahead will look like,” the family wrote. “What we do know is this: We cannot do it alone.”
