House catches fire after lightning strike in Paradip, 3 critical

Two rooms were completely gutted after lightning struck a thatched house at Barihadiha village in Kujanga block in Jagatsinghpur district  in the wee hours of Saturday. Three persons, including a woman and her two sons, sustained critical injuries in the lightning strike and subsequent fire mishap.

All the injured have been shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack and their condition is said to be critical. It is pertinent to mention here that several parts of Odisha experienced intense thunderstorms and lightning activities yesterday. The twin cities of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar also experienced Nor’wester rain.

Pratima Parida, a family member said, “My mother-in-law, husband and brother-in-law have been injured when lightning struck our house at around 2 am.”

Pramod Swain, a local resident said, ‘Three persons have been injured in the lightning strike. The houses have been gutted in the incident. The BDO and Tehsildar have been informed who assured that necessary assistance will be given to the affected families.”

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Friday issued a yellow warning for thunderstorm activities in several parts of the state in the next three to four days.

Though there will be no major change in the maximum temperature in several interior parts of the state, other districts are likely to experience thunderstorms and lightning activities in the next few days.