NEW YORK, June 23, 2024 (AFP) – Two people were taken to hospital Saturday after a lightning strike near a home at TPC River Highlands, the course hosting the US PGA Tour Travelers Championship, the local fire department said. A release from the Cromwell Fire Department said the Connecticut town’s police department began receiving emergency calls regarding a lightning strike at a house located near the course’s fifth green around 4:26 pm — about […]
Tag: lightning
Hong Kong lashed with nearly 10,000 lightning strikes overnight
Hong Kong was lashed by nearly 10,000 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes from Tuesday night to Wednesday morning, according to data from the city’s weather observatory. The Chinese city is accustomed to high humidity levels during April leading up to monsoon season, with residents prepared for sudden downpours during their workday commutes. Beginning 9:00 pm Tuesday evening, Hong Kong skies put on a flashy display, with the observatory recording 5,914 lightning bolts in a single hour as […]
Lightning, downpours kill 41 people across Pakistan
By Kaneez FATIMA LAHORE, Pakistan, April 15, 2024 (AFP) – At least 41 people have died in storm-related incidents across Pakistan since Friday, including 28 killed by lightning, officials said on Monday. Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has warned of landslides and flash floods because more rain is expected in coming days. Punjab, Pakistan’s largest and most populous province, witnessed the highest death toll, with 21 people killed by lightning between Friday and Sunday. […]
Lightning scorches four people at Botanic Gardens near Sydney Opera House
SYDNEY, Feb 19, 2024 (AFP) – A lightning bolt scorched and knocked out four people near the Sydney Opera House on Monday as they sheltered under a tree during a violent electrical storm, rescue officials said. The four were struck beneath the tree in the Botanic Gardens, ambulance workers said, just a stone’s throw from the harbourside architectural masterpiece. “They all had a brief loss of consciousness,” said New South Wales ambulance service’s Dominic Wong. […]
Lightning strikes kill 18 people in India
AHMEDABAD, India, Nov 27, 2023 (AFP) – At least 18 people were killed in lightning strikes across western India’s Gujarat state during unseasonably intense storms on Sunday, officials said. Such big rainstorms are not expected in Gujarat during winter months, and fierce downpours caught many off guard. While flash floods and lightning kill dozens of people in India each year, scientists warn that rising global temperatures are unleashing a cascade of extreme weather events. At […]
Saudi storm brings lightning, fierce winds to Mecca
RIYADH, Aug 23, 2023 (AFP) – Fierce storms closed schools Wednesday in Saudi Arabia’s Mecca region, home to Islam’s the Grand Mosque, which was lashed by heavy rains and wind overnight, witnesses said. As pilgrims tried to circumambulate the Kaaba, the giant black cube towards which all Muslims pray, a bolt of lightning struck the iconic Fairmont Makkah Clock Royal Tower hotel, illuminating the night sky late Tuesday. The storm brought gale force winds exceeding […]
26 more dead in India monsoon fury, waters recede in Bangladesh
At least 26 more people have died in monsoon flooding and lightning strikes in India, as millions remained marooned in the country and neighbouring Bangladesh, authorities said Monday. Floods are a regular menace in India and Bangladesh, but experts say climate change is increasing their frequency, ferocity and unpredictability for the two countries’ 1.6 billion people. In India‘s northeastern state of Assam, three people were killed in landslides while six others died in flood waters, […]
Climate crisis triggers spike in lightning strike deaths in India
by Abhaya SRIVASTAVA JAIPUR, India (AFP) — Faizuddin is still traumatized from the lightning strike that killed his three friends as they took selfies atop a 400-year-old fort in India, where climate change is making lethal strikes more common. Scores of people have met similarly gruesome ends this year in the western desert state of Rajasthan, where deaths caused by thunderstorms used to be uncommon. “I was hit by three thunderbolts, one after the other,” […]
Lightning cuts short NYC Homecoming Concert
By Joanne Soriano EBC New York Bureau (Eagle News) — The much anticipated “We Love NYC: The Homecoming Concert” in Central Park was cancelled halfway through the five-hour program due to lightning. An announcement was made for attendees to quickly and calmly exit due to approaching severe weather. The show was initially suspended with attendees asked to find a safe place to shelter, then cancelled. Before the concert, Mayor Bill De Blasio had also […]
Lightning strikes kill 16 at Bangladesh wedding
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) –Several lightning bolts hit a Bangladesh wedding party within a few seconds Wednesday, killing 16 people and injuring the groom, officials said. The group had just left a boat at the riverside town of Shibganj to take shelter from the thunderstorm when the lightning struck, a government administrator for the town said. The bride was not with the wedding party, Sakib Al-Rabby told AFP, confirming 16 people died as several bolts struck […]
Lightning kills 76 in India, including selfie-takers near famous fort
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — Several people reportedly taking selfies near a historical fort in northern India were among nearly 80 killed by lightning strikes during the early stages of the annual monsoon season, officials said Monday. Deadly lightning strikes are common in the vast Asian nation during the June-September deluge, which bring respite from the summer heat across the northern Indian plains. Of the 76 killed, at least 23 people died in the mostly […]
Lightning strikes kill more than 50 in India
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — More than 50 people were killed in lightning strikes across several states in India, authorities said Monday, including 11 people at a historic fort. Hundreds of people are killed each year in intense storms at the start of the monsoon season, which bring respite from the summer heat across the northern Indian plains. Media reports said about 10 other people were killed Sunday in the desert state of Rajasthan and […]
