Ten children killed after being struck by lightning while playing football in Uganda
TEN children have been killed after being struck by lightning while playing football in Uganda.
They had just taken shelter in a grass hut when it was hit by a massive deadly bolt in the city of Arua.
Nine of the kids – aged 13 to 15 – were killed immediately while another died on the way to hospital.
Three survivors are currently receiving treatment for their injuries at a regional hospital.
All the kids had been playing football in a field when the storm hit, revealed police spokeswoman Josephine Angucia.
Killer lightning is common in the East African country during the wet seasons.
In some cases, children are reported to have been struck while sitting at their school desks.
Many classroom blocks, especially in rural areas, are not equipped with life-saving lightning diverters.
Uganda’s north-western region has recently been hit by severe rain storms, thunder and lightning.
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The new tragedy his the worst accident of its kind in Uganda since 2011, when 18 children were killed at a school in the mid-western region.
That year, 28 people also died from lightning strikes in a single week.
In February, four endangered mountain gorillas were killed in a strike in a Ugandan national park.