At least 14 people were killed and three others were injured by lightning that hit the mountains of northwestern Pakistan, local authorities were told Sunday. The incident occurred in Torghar district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, hit since Wednesday by torrential monsoon rains and landslides.
“At least 14 people from the same family were killed after lightning struck two adjacent houses,” said Kamran Bangash, spokesman for the province. Five children and four women are among those who died, he said.
Eighteen people killed by lightning in 2019
Contacted, the office of the head of government of the province confirmed the results. The monsoon, which rages from June to September, is essential for irrigating crops and filling the water reserves of the Indian subcontinent.
But each year, the violent precipitations are accompanied by their procession of victims and destruction. In November 2019, 18 people had already been killed by lightning in the Thar, a remote and desert region in southern Pakistan.
