A 45-year-old man died after he was struck by a lightning bolt in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Friday. The incident occurred early in the morning.
He was identified as Hamidullah, son of Ghulam Hassan Khan of Gudder village. “He died after lightning struck him when he had taken his cattle for grazing to nearby Kaznad,” locals said.
Following the incident, officials from Police and civil-administration visited the spot. They assured of providing all assistance to the kin of the deceased.
Three persons including a teenager and a father-son duo drowned when a vehicle in which they were travelling skidded off the road and submerged in the fast-flowing River Chenab on the Mehar-Cafeteria stretch of Ramban on Friday.
Police said that a vehicle (JK19 9605) on its way to Ramban from Udhampur rolled into the River Chenab near Mehar and submerged, resulting in drowning of the three persons travelling in it.
It said that soon after the incident, rescue teams of Police and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) reached the spot and launched a rescue operation to trace the bodies of drowned persons on the embankments of River Chenab at Mehar, Maitra, Ramban, Seri, and other places.
A rescue worker said that nothing except the number plate of vehicle and identity cards, and mobile phones of the two victims were found on the embankments of River Chenab at the site of the accident.
SSP Ramban, Mohita Sharma said three people died in the accident. Sharma identified the trio as Bharat Singh, 52, his son Vikram Singh, 30, both residents of Teli Majra Seri, Ramban, and Rohit Katoch, 17, son of Surjeet Singh Katoch of Gali Bass, Ramban.
A search operation on the embankments of River Chenab from Mehar to Seri is going on to recover the bodies of the drowned accident victims.
