Bhubaneswar: In a tragic turn of events, lightning strikes claimed two lives on Tuesday, including a Class 10 student. The deceased have been identified as Rajesh Gouda and Manoj Kumar Nayak.
Rajesh Gouda, a 10th-grade student, was struck by lightning while returning from Bamkei to Narayanpur under the Digapahandi block in Ganjam district.
The sudden lightning strike caused him to collapse on the spot. Locals rescued him in critical condition and rushed him to the Digapahandi Community Health Center.
However, doctors declared him dead upon arrival. Rajesh had recently appeared for his matriculation exams this year. His untimely death, just before the results were to be announced, has left his family and the local community in deep mourning.
In a separate incident in Puri district, Manoj Kumar Nayak (23) lost his life to a lightning strike at Gobardhanpur village under Brahmagiri police limits.
Manoj, along with his parents, had gone to their paddy field near Gobardhanpur village to drain excess water caused by the heavy rains under the impact of Kalabaisakhi.
While Manoj was working on one side of the field with a spade, his parents were on the other side. Suddenly, lightning struck Manoj, leaving him critically injured.
Family members and villagers rushed him to the Revana Nuagaon Community Health Centre in an auto-rickshaw. From there, he was taken to Puri District Hospital in an ambulance, where doctors declared him dead.
