Lightning strike kills two women farm workers in Kalaburagi; others escape unhurt
Two women were killed when lightning struck them at Nagoor village in Kamalapur taluk of Kalaburagi district on Monday, the police said.
The deceased were Lakshmi, 45, wife of farmer Basayya Guttedar, and Shahzada Bi, 60, an agricultural labourer.
According to the police, the two women were among a group of about seven agricultural workers who were engaged in weeding a tur crop in Mr Guttedar's field. They had stopped work and gathered under a tree for lunch when rain began suddenly.
As the rain intensified, the group stayed under the tree for shelter. A lightning strike, accompanied by thunder, hit the spot. Lakshmi and Shahzada Bi died on the spot, while the other labourers with them escaped unhurt.
The incident is a reminder of the risks that agricultural workers face during the pre-monsoon and monsoon months, when they work in open fields with little protection from the weather. Lightning is among the more common weather-related causes of death in India, and a large share of the victims are people working outdoors in rural areas.
Disaster management authorities advise people caught in a thunderstorm to move into a pucca building or into a vehicle with the windows rolled up. Trees, especially isolated ones, and flimsy open sheds are not considered safe shelter. If no shelter is available, the guidance is to crouch low with the feet together and the hands over the ears, keeping away from tall objects, metal structures and water bodies.
Kalaburagi district lies in the Kalyana Karnataka region, which typically experiences thunderstorm activity in the weeks before the south-west monsoon sets in. Sudden, short and intense spells of rain accompanied by lightning are common during this period, catching outdoor workers off guard.
Officials have repeatedly stressed that early warnings need to reach people working in fields and on construction sites, since those who are far from a safe building have the fewest options when a storm builds up quickly.
The deaths in Nagoor have left the local farming community in shock. Lakshmi and Shahzada Bi, both daily-wage earners, were part of the seasonal workforce that keeps the district's tur and other crop fields tended. Their families, like others in the village, depended on that daily work.
The police said they had gathered details of the incident from the labourers who were present at the spot.
