CINCINNATI — A second person has died after lightning struck a group of joggers in Spring Grove Cemetery last Friday.
Patricia Herlinger, 55, of Colerain Township, died Wednesday in an intensive care unit, according to a coroner’s report.
Herlinger was a Cincinnati occupational safety & health coordinator in risk management, according to a statement from City Manager Patrick Duhaney. She also worked in the Metropolitan Sewer District and Greater Cincinnati Water Works over a career that spanned 31 years.
“I think she’s probably one of the only employees that every city employee knew and had a conversation with,” Duhaney said.
Duhaney called Herlinger's death "an incredible loss for the city," noting that several people closest to Herlinger also worked for the city.
Herlinger's partner, Brian, is a current MSD employee, and her sister Jennifer works for the Cincinnati Health Department. Duhaney said. Herlinger is also survived by her mother Cindy, a retired city employee.
Danielle "Dani" Brosious, 27,also died from the lightning strike. They were jogging with Brosious's mother, city retirement office employee Mary Kelsey.
City Council held a moment of silence Friday for both victims.
Herlinger was "a sweet person” who loved to run and had a big heart for animals, said her neighbor, David Medkeff.
“It’s a blow ... what an unusual accident,” Medkeff said. “it’s a beautiful place. I know a lot of people hike and jog there, but I never thought that, 'Gosh, that was our neighbor.' ”
Arrangements for Herlinger's memorial will be announced soon, the city manager said.
Visitation for Brosious is 5-8 p.m. Friday at Mihovk-Rosenacker Funeral Home, 10211 Plainfield Road. Mass of Christian Burial is 10 a.m. Saturday at Mercy McAuley High School.
WCPO reached out to the families who asked for privacy and prayers. The cemetery expressed its condolences to the families.
