Youth Killed, Sister Critical In Lightning Strike In Odisha’s Kandhamal

Phulbani: A youth was killed and his sister sustained critical burn injuries after lightning struck them at a village in Kotagarh area of Odisha’s Kandhamal district on Tuesday.

As per preliminary reports, the incident took place in a forest near Subarnagiri village under the jurisdiction of Kotagarh police station.

The deceased was identified as Mukesh Pradhani. He had gone to the forest near the village to collect mahua flower along with his sister, Supriya Pradhani and two others.

As they were busy collecting mahua flower inside the forest, heavy rain accompanied by lightning suddenly occurred in the area. Following rain, all of them took shelter under trees to save themselves when they were hit by lightning strikes. While Mukesh died on the spot, Supriya was critically injured. The two others had a narrow escape.

On being informed about the incident, their family members and other villagers rushed to the site. Supriya was sent to hospital for treatment, sources said.