NI: Soldier killed by lightening on mountain

A climber believed killed by lightning on a Co Down mountain top was a sergeant in the Royal Signals, it emerged today.

The soldier, aged 29, from north Humberside, is thought to have been struck as he sought shelter from a storm.

A British army spokesman refused to disclose the dead man’s name for security reasons, but confirmed he had been on a day off from his base at Ballykelly barracks, Co Derry.

A group of walkers discovered the body, partially covered with snow, on Saturday, at the entrance to a stone shelter at the top of Slieve Donard, in the Mourne Mountains.

A post mortem examination revealed there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the soldier’s death.

Ed Kilgore, of the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team, said the climber was well-equipped and had plenty of food with him.

He estimated the body could have been lying on the peak for up to two days.

A police search and rescue team and doctor were airlifted to the scene, in a Dublin-based coastguard helicopter, after the alarm was raised.

Around 850 metres high, Slieve Donard is the highest mountain in Northern Ireland.