Nine people lost their lives in separate incidents of lightning strikes across three districts of Bihar on Wednesday, April 9. The fatalities were reported from Begusarai, Madhubani, and another district. Five people died in Begusarai, while three people, including a father and daughter, were killed in Madhubani. An elderly person also died after being struck by lightning.
Thunderstorms, heavy rainfall, and hailstorms on Wednesday caused significant damage to structures, the uprooting of trees, and several other incidents across different parts of Bihar. In the Jhanjharpur division of Madhubani district, three individuals died after being struck by lightning in separate locations.
The deceased included a father and daughter from one family and a woman from another. The first incident occurred in Alpura village under Rudrapur police station limits. Early in the morning, seeing dark clouds, farmer Mohammad Zakir Ansari (58) and his daughter Asma Khatoon (19) went to the fields. As the elder women in the house were busy cooking, Asma accompanied her father. While they were covering the wheat crop with a tarp, lightning struck, killing both of them on the spot. Family members rushed to the scene upon hearing the news. The police have sent the bodies for post-mortem examination.
The second incident took place in Piprauliya village under Araria Sangram police station in Madhubani. Durga Devi (45), wife of Raman Kumar Mahto, was covering firewood with a tarp when lightning struck, killing her instantly. Station House Officer (SHO) Balwant Kumar confirmed that the body has been sent for post-mortem.
In Begusarai district, five people died in five separate incidents of lightning strikes. In one case, some women and girls from Manopur village under Bhawanipur police station limits had gone to the fields for open defecation when lightning struck. Anshu Kumari (13), daughter of Ramkumar Sada, died on the spot. Her sister, Aanchal Kumari, was seriously injured in the incident.