8, including 5 children, killed in lightning strike in Chhattisgarh

Eight persons, including five school children, were killed and one person was injured after being struck by lightning at a village in Rajnandgaon district on Monday, police said.

The incident took place at around 1.30pm in Joratarai village under Somni police station area, they said.

Rajnanadgaon superintendent of police (SP) Mohit Garg said, “As per preliminary information, eight persons, who were taking shelter in a concrete waiting room which was near the village, died in the lightning strike. The children and others were returning home when the rains started and they took shelter in the room.”

“The deceased were from three villages from a nearby area and the five deceased children were aged between eight to twelve years,” the SP said.

The bodies have been sent for postmortem and one person, who was also in the same building, is safe and undergoing treatment, he added.