Lightning Strike Kills Brother, Leaves Sister Critical In Odisha’s Kandhamal District

Baliguda: A youth died today due to lightning in Subarnagiri village under Kotagarh police station area of Kandhamal district of Odisha, while his sister got serious burns. Mukesh Pradhani of the village along with his sister Supriya Pradhani, uncle and aunt had gone to the nearby forest to collect Mahula flowers (Madhuca indica). There is sudden lightning accompanied by heavy rain in the area. After which all of them took shelter under the trees to save themselves.

While the distressed sister took shelter under the Mahula tree, their uncle and aunt hid under another tree near the Mahula tree. Unfortunately, due to lightning, Mukesh and Supriya died on the spot and Supriya was seriously injured. However, his uncle and aunt narrowly escaped death. Soon, Supriya’s uncle reached the village and informed the family members and villagers about the incident, while his wife stayed back with him to take care of the siblings. After reaching the spot, family members and villagers sent Supriya by ambulance to Baliguda Hospital for treatment. According to informed sources, his condition is said to be serious. “When we were collecting mahula flowers, we took shelter separately after it rained and lightning. Mukesh and Supriya got injured due to lightning. When we reached them, Mukesh was dead while Supriya was screaming for help.

Soon, we gave her water and massaged her feet and palms. Then I went to call family members, who arranged for an ambulance and brought her to the hospital,” said Supriya’s uncle Siba Pradhani. While this heart-wrenching incident has shocked and saddened all the people of the area, the Kotagarh police has sent Mukesh’s body to the hospital for post-mortem. The body will be handed over to the family after post-mortem.