Bangladesh: Secen dead after lightning during rainstorms

Lightning strikes during seasonal rainstorms killed at least seven people and injured five others today in the Bangladeshi capital and two other eastern districts, a news agency reported.

An army soldier was killed while exercising at a parade ground inside a military area of the capital, Dhaka, the United News of Bangladesh reported.

A heavy downpour also submerged many city roads in knee-deep water – stranding hundreds of vehicles and commuters, while power outages left several busy areas of the capital in darkness.

Three villagers were killed in eastern Brahmanbaria district, 50 miles east of the national capital, Dhaka, while three others died in neighbouring Comilla, the agency said.

The storms, accompanied by heavy rain and hail, also levelled hundreds of flimsy huts, destroyed crops and uprooted trees in several Bangladeshi districts.

Yesterday, lightning killed a schoolgirl and a farmer, while a woman died after her house collapsed during thunderstorms.

The storms came after a month-long heat wave that scorched much of the low-lying delta nation – with temperatures reaching up to 40 degrees Celsius.