India: More Than 100 People Killed By Lightning Strikes

At least 107 people died Thursday as a result of lightning strikes in northern and eastern India, officials said.

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The country is at the early stages of the annual monsoon season that stretches between June and September. Thus, lightning is very frequent. 

Authorities estimate that  83 people were killed in the impoverished eastern state of Bihar after being struck by lightning and another 24 died in northern Uttar Pradesh state, while dozens more were injured informed the disaster management team in Bihar.

Bihar's Disaster Management Minister Lakshmeshwar Rai said this was one of the highest tolls from lightning the state had recorded in recent years, as the population has been warned to stay indoors and meteorologists forecasts more stormy wheater.

The deaths have been reported just as the monsoon arrived in Bihar and neighboring regions. The victims were mostly farmers or the homeless who were outdoors, said disaster management official Umesh Singh.

On the other hand, Minister Rai also informed that the death toll could rise since this team still awaits for casualty reports at the interior regions of the state.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau, more than 2,300 people were killed by lightning in India in 2018 and at least 2,000 people have died in lightning strikes every year since 2005.