Lightning causes problems

Emergency-service crews were kept busy in the Bigfork and East Valley areas Tuesday night as lightning and high winds caused problems.

Fire crews were called to downed electrical lines on Sherman Lane near Echo Lake at about 8 p.m., but were diverted to bigger problems at Echo Lake Marina where downed electrical lines created a hazard for boaters trying to get off the lake, a sheriff s dispatcher said.

Lightning started a wheat field on fire on Trap Road near Columbia Falls, and at Nyack Flats a tree was on fire, endangering a residence. Crews reportedly battled another blaze on Montana 83 near Bigfork.

The power was out in some areas, including West Glacier, where a man called 911 because his oxygen supply was dwindling.