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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Lifestyle
Peony Hirwani

One Tree Hill star Bevin Prince breaks silence after husband’s death from lightning strike

Bevin Prince/Instagram

One Tree Hill star Bevin Prince has spoken out about her husband William Friend’s tragic death earlier this year.

In July, Friend, 33, died of a lightning strike on a boat near Masonboro Island in North Carolina during a thunderstorm.

According to local news station WECT-TV, paramedics attempted to resuscitate Friend for 20 minutes but he was pronounced dead in the ambulance.

On Friday’s (2 December) episode of the 1 on 1 With Jon Evans podcast, Prince broke her silence about her husband’s death.

“It was like any other day that we’d done a million times. The storm was far away, we’re on the boat, everything’s fine,” she said.

“And then in an instant, everything has changed,” she added. “There’s no normal, and there’s no playbook for it.”

Prince revealed that there was a bounty hunter, a nurse, and a military veteran on the boat next to them and they “responded so fast” to the incident.

However, Friend could not be saved.

Following Friend’s death, John Jensenius of the National Lightning Safety Council issued a warning about being on the water during a thunderstorm.

“We recommend getting as far away from water as possible but, to be honest, if you’re in the water or if you’re on the beach, you’re very exposed to the lightning threat,” Jensenius told WECT-TV.

Prince Friend married in 2016. The pair celebrated their sixth wedding anniversary in May this year.

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