Keonjhar: Three persons including two women of a family died after lightning struck them on farmlands in separate places under Harichandanpur block of Keonjhar district Wednesday.
A woman who was injured in the incident was admitted to the hospital. The deceased were identified as a couple –Chaitanya Mohanta, 45, and his wife Meena Mohanta, 45 – of Badasialimala village and another woman Jayanti Mohanta, 45, wife of Rabindra Mohanta of Thakurpada village.
Labanybati Mohanta, 34, who was working in another agricultural land near the deceased couple at Badasialimala village was rendered critical in the mishap.
Labanyabati was first admitted to Harichandanpur hospital and later shifted to Keonjhar district headquarters hospital. Jayanti was killed when she was working in a field at Thakurpada village. Harichandanpur police rushed to the spot and sent the bodies for post-mortem. Further investigations are under way.
While there were thunderbolts accompanied by rain at several places in the district, the weatherman has predicted that a low pressure area which was forming over Northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining coastal Odisha may trigger rain in Puri, Khurda, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Dhenkanal and Keonjhar.