- Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s home was struck by lightning twice in a matter of days
- Firefighters battled blaze at the 21-year-old midfielder’s mansion in Surrey
- He had a lucky escape 12 years ago when a bolt struck a window in front of him
He is one of football’s rising stars and making a name for himself after a stunning England debut – but Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s fate could have turned out very differently after three near-death misses.
The Premier League star’s mansion in Cobham, Surrey, was struck by lightning twice in a matter of days, sparking a blaze which nearly destroyed the £1.8million property.
And it has emerged the 21-year-old midfielder had survived a bolt which hit a window he was looking out of as a boy 12 years ago.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s home was struck by lightning twice – some 12 years after he was nearly hit by a bolt as a child
The Crystal Palace midfield, currently on loan from Chelsea, was out when lightning struck his home during a storm in June last year.
Firefighters rushed to the footballer’s mansion, where he lives with his mother, after an outbuilding containing a bedroom and gym was hit by a bolt, sparking a blaze.
Crews battled for almost six hours to save the building, which suffered substantial damage to the roof and large parts of the bedroom.
Some 12 years earlier, while living in Swanley in Kent, the star’s family home was hit by lightning as he watched storms from a bedroom window.
A bolt hit the metal window frame, sending its force through his mother Juliette Cheek and on through her three children who she was holding at the time.
Ms Cheek, 57, told Get Surrey after the fire last summer: ‘It’s a bit shocking to have two strikes in a week.
‘It makes me frightened to go out when there’s a thunder storm as I’ll be worrying about the house.’