Lightning kills 3, injures 2 in separate incidents in Pakistan's Sindh

Sindh [Pakistan], July 8 : Lightning has killed at least three people and injured two others in three different incidents in Jamshoro and Badin districts of Sindh, Dawn reported.

Dawn is a Pakistani English-language newspaper.

Many Sindh districts received long spells of heavy rainfall followed by more intermittent spells on Friday evening badly affecting civic infrastructure and power supply network, besides causing flooding in urban areas.

The districts that received widespread downpours included Hyderabad, Jamshoro, Shaheed Benazirabad, Sanghar, Badin and Matiari. Parts of Karachi and Mirpurkhas divisions received a few short spells of light rain till late in the evening but a downpour was expected as the sky remained overcast on Thursday and Friday amid suffocating hot weather conditions. Most areas in Karachi received only traces, according to the Met office, as per Dawn.

Sindh's Hyderabad was affected by heavy rainfall, the first of this year's monsoon, accompanied by thunder and lightning for over two hours crippling routine life and causing partial collapse of the city's electric supply system.

The city's sky remained heavily overcast throughout the day until it started raining at about 4:30 pm for about two hours. The downpour brought a pleasant change in the otherwise oppressive hot conditions prevailing across Sindh for weeks together, as per Dawn.

Following the downpour, all roads and streets were inundated and the sanitation workers were busy draining rainwater till late in the evening.

Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) spokesperson said that 195 of its total 583 feeders were affected by the rainfall. Out of the 195 affected feeders, 56 are meant for Hyderabad city.

The power supply had gone off in many areas soon after it started raining and could not be restored till late in the evening.

After sunset, the entire city plunged into darkness. The Met Office at the airport recorded 21 mm of rainfall.

The rain gauges installed at taluka-level offices of the administration recorded 33 mm of rainfall in the City taluka, as per Dawn.