3 killed in lightning strikes as thunderstorm batters North Karnataka, coastal districts

Three people, including a woman, were killed and as many injured in lightning strikes in Kittur and Kalyana Karnataka districts as heavy rains, accompanied by thunder, lightning and gusty winds continued to lash the regions on Sunday. 

The evening showers have brought the temperatures down giving some much-needed respite for the people in many areas of north Karnataka.

Hubballi-Dharwad twin cities experienced heavy showers, coupled with heightened thunder and lightning activity, in the evening. Skies opened up at 4 pm and it poured for the next two hours bringing life to a standstill.

Jayashree Sirasangi (29) was struck dead by lightning while her husband Hanumanthappa Sirasangi sustained severe burns in the incident. The incident occurred when they were working at their farm at Kalageri on the outskirts of Dharwad.

Gadag-Betageri and several parts of the district experienced downpour coupled with gusty winds. Several bikes and cars parked outside the houses were damaged in tree fall incidents in Gadag. The sharp spell of rain left farmlands at Kurthkoti, Shygoti. Dundur and Hulakoti in Gadag taluk flooded.

Vehicular movement on Gajendragad-Naregal road was hit after a wind turbine tower fell on the road near Gaddihall stream. Heavy showers infused life into several streams in Gadag taluk.

Kalyana Karnataka districts also saw thundershowers on Sunday. Kariyappa Ayyappa Ganakihaal (48) was killed in a lightning strike while Basavaraj suffered injuries at Komalapur village near Mudgal of Raichur district.

A haystack belonging to a farmer from Megalapete was gutted in a fire triggered by a lightning strike. Over a dozen electricity poles were uprooted in Mudgal and surrounding villages affecting the power supply.

A portion of a spectator gallery of the taluk stadium at Jewargi collapsed following rain and strong winds that lashed the town on Sunday.

Pre-monsoon showers have hit normal life in the coastal towns of Uttara Kannada district.

Bhatkal and Honnavar in particular, received a relentless battering of thunderstorms. Vinayak Kharvi (38), a fisherman, was killed in a lightning strike while he was fishing near Apsarakonda beach. Two tourists are said to have suffered minor burns in a lightning strike near the beach.

Meanwhile, a 35-year-old man from Mudashirali in Bhatkal taluk sustained serious injuries after an electricity pole fell on him while he was riding a scooter.

Heavy rains also lashed Dandeli, Joida and Mundgod in the evening. Several houses have been damaged in the tree fall incidents.

Crops including paddy, papaya, areca on 622 acres have been damaged in the Saturday night rain in Davangere district with Channagiri taluk taking the maximum hit.

Heavy overnight rains left the Raghavendraswamy Temple near Huchuraya Swamy lake in Shikaripura town, Shivamogga district.

Motor vehicles navigate a flooded Indira Glass House Road in Hubballi on Sunday.

Rainwater mixed with sewage gushed into the shops and houses in the low-lying areas of the town.

Zinc sheets and iron angulars of the auditorium of the government PU college in Ripponpet of Shivamogga district were blown away in the storm that lashed the town late Saturday evening.

The pre-monsoon showers are likely to continue for next two to three days in north and south interior Karnataka and parts of Malnad and coastal districts, according to the weather department.