7 killed in Bihar lightning strikes

Patna: At least seven people lost their lives in separate lightning strike incidents triggered by heavy rains in Bihar’s Madhubani and Begusarai districts over the past 24 hours, officials said.

In Madhubani, three people were killed in different parts of the district on Wednesday morning. In the Alpura village of Rudrapur, under Andharathari block, 62-year-old Zakir and his 18-year-old daughter Ayesha died while trying to cover a wheat stock in their field with a tarpaulin during a sudden downpour. In another incident, Rekha Devi, wife of Revan Mahato from Pipraulia village under the Jhanjharpur police station area of Madhubani, was struck by lightning and died while she was near the fields.

In Begusarai, four fatalities were reported in separate incidents. Thirteen-year-old Anshu Kumari, daughter of Ramkumar Sada of Manopur village under Bhagwanpur police station, died after being struck by lightning. In Bhagatpur village, under Ballia police station, 60-year-old Biral Paswan died, and his wife was seriously injured while they were collecting straw in the fields.

Indira Devi, a middle-aged woman from Sanha Navtoliya village under Sahebpur Kamal police station limits, was killed near Mohanpur Dhaba in the Mashudanpur Diara Path area.