Hoax debunked after Drew Brees appears to be struck by lightning during promo shoot

NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — A video has surfaced in the Twitterverse of Drew Brees being struck by lightning while shooting a video, but don’t worry — the Saints legend is just fine.

Earlier this week, Brees tweeted that he would be traveling to a top-secret location for a promotional shoot for sports betting company, PointsBet.

No other details on the shoot were released. That was, until a video tweeted by photographer Rafael Hernández around midnight Friday morning showed footage of the quarterback getting sacked by a bolt of lightning in Catatumbo, Venezuela, an area globally known for its lightning storms.

“Star of the @NFL @drewbrees was struck by lightning in Catatumbo while we were recording a commercial south of Lake Maracaibo. It happened a few hours ago. More information shortly…” Hernandez said, translated from Spanish.

For several hours, fans were left worrying about the NFL star and speculating about the authenticity of the video, even more so after a statement from PointsBet said they were in contact with Brees’ team and would continue to monitor the situation, but would not comment further.

The rumors were dispelled after several points of contact with Brees, including ESPN Saints reporter Katherine Terrell said that Brees was fine. Later Friday morning, Brees even chimed in on the hype, joking that the lightning must have thought he was wearing an Atlanta Falcons jersey.

The video was part of a bigger promotion which later included a second video of Brees joking that he was ‘buzzing’ for free lightning bets being offered by PointsBet.

“Hopefully lightning doesn’t strike twice,” Brees said as the ad ends with a second bolt.