Seven killed by lightning as sudden storm hits west UP

Bareilly/Pilibhit/Agra: Seven people — three minors, three farmers and one woman — died and at least 11 sustained varying degrees of burns after being struck by lightning when storms lashed parts of western UP before dawn on Wednesday.
Siblings Abhayraj, 6, and Anand, 10 died, and two of their neighbours suffered severe burns while playing under a mango tree outside their home in Padri village in Kheri district on Wednesday morning.The injured children were taken to the district hospital in Lakhimpur city, where they are out of danger.
The deceased’s father, Tej Pal, a farmer, said, “We were home when it started raining. Our children, eagerly waiting for the showers, went out to play and enjoy the weather. They were hit by lightning while plucking mangoes. There was nothing I could do to save them.”
Malti Devi, 32, and her husband, Naresh Kumar, were planting crops in Sambhal’s Tatarpur Sandal village when lightning struck.