Lightning kills 40-year-old woman

It was a scene of sorrow and tears when lightning struck a woman believed to be in her early forties to death in Jacksonville, Maryland County, Southeast Liberia. The incident occurred early this week (Tuesday, 7 June) during heavy downpour in the county.

According to state radio, the victim, identified as Fatu Kromah, was a Guinean national, who just returned from Guinea and had gone to visit family members in that part of the country when she met her sudden death.

Prior to the incident, the late Fatu reportedly left her family residence and went to the central mosque in Maryland for evening prayers in observance of Holy Ramadan, a month-long fast and prayers annually observed by Muslims the world over.

State radio correspondent in the county narrated that after the lightning struck, the late Madam Kromah fell to the ground, and family members immediately rushed her to a nearby community health center where she was subsequently pronounced dead by a physician assistant on duty, Mr. Hilary Toe.

Aggrieved family members are raising serious concern over the death of Madam Kromah, and are suspicious that it was natural, because it had never happened before in the family.  The entire Jacksonville community is reportedly subdued with some residents saying this was the first time lightning has killed someone in their area.

“The only thing that we community members are aware of is the thunderstorm, this is something that normally occurs in this county, so on this one, it looks strange to us. This is not an ordinary lightning, we that know much of this is that when this kills, it means someone may had sent it to you or it is intended to kill criminal. These are things that our people use to get rid of people that are engaged in criminal activities; it is a normal thing” the correspondent quoted some residents to have explained.

According to scientific research, lightning is caused by an electrical discharge of electrons moving very quickly from one place to another. These electrons move so quickly that they superheat the air around them causing it to glow.

By Lewis S. Teh-Editing by Jonathan Browne