18 killed by lightning in nine districts

Lightning strikes during a severe nor’wester peppered the whole country on Sunday, leaving 18 dead and several injured. In the Akhaura upazila of Brahmanbaria, a rice farmer named Abdur Rahim, 50, was killed in the field at around 8am. Two labourers were also injured in the incident, and were later taken to a local hospital. In Rangamati's Baghaichhari, a woman named Mansura Begum, 35, was struck by lightning while working outside of her home. She died at the local health complex. Three people were killed in three separate areas of Magura district in the afternoon. Rickshaw van driver Shamim Hossain, 40, was struck by lightning in the Sadar upazila while driving his van; Alam Miya, 35, was struck in the same region while he was on his way home; Mehedi Hossain, 25, was killed in the Shalikha upazila while working on a mobile network tower. In Naogaon, a woman named Sonabhan, 22, was killed and three other men living in the same house were injured. The incident occurred in the Sapahar upazila at around 2pm, with the three others, including the woman’s husband being rescued and taken to the hospital by locals. Muktar Hossain, 14, a school student, was killed when he went to bring the cattle home. Sirajganj saw five deaths including those of a father and his son in the Kazipur and Kamarkhanda upazilas of the district. The deceased are Shamsul Haque, 55, his son Arman, 14, both from Kazipur, Kader Hossain, 37, from Kamarkhanda, and two teenagers from Shahzadpur - Nabil, 17, and Paulin, 15. Locals said that the father and son were gathering nuts when they were incinerated by lightning. Nabil and Paulin were playing with friends when lightning struck them. Four of their friends were admitted to the Shahzadpur Sadar Hospital. Meanwhile, Kader Hossain was working in a paddy field when he was struck. In Noakhali, Iqbal Hossain Piyal, 13, a student, and Shahin, 26, a paddy worker, were killed by lightning. Two others were injured. In Sunamganj Sadar upazila, a farmer named Liton Miah, 30, was killed after being struck by lightning on his own paddy field. Two people were killed by lightning in Gazipur, Zafarul Islam, 20, a garment factory worker, and Amena Begum. In Gopalganj, a farmer named Ashok Pandey, 22, was killed by lightning. Parts of this article were first published on banglatribune.com