Freak lightning incident injures mother, son at Kolkata home

KOLKATA: A 45-year-old woman — a private insurance firm employee — and her 18-year-old son, a first year student of a reputable Park Street college, were injured after lightning stuck their ground floor flat in a three storey building in the Kamdahari area of Bansdroni early on Saturday morning.
Cops said that the condition of the woman, Ananya Biswas (45), is serious and she is admitted at SSKM Hospital.Her son, Suryangshu Narayan Biswas (18), was admitted at Baghajatin Hospital and is stable.
Bansdroni police and fire department have confirmed that injuries were caused by a lightning strike. “The entire house was in a disarray. The lightning had travelled downward and windows were damaged even on the first floor. Inside the room, curtains and few clothes were reduced to shreds. Household articles too had caught fire,” said an investigating officer.
According to Suryangshu, he was sleeping and his grandfather was in another room. His mother, was having tea close to his bed at around 7.15am when the incident took place. “Suddenly, there was a deafening sound. It sounded like a transformer blast. The next moment, a fireball seemed to be ripping through our home even as the curtains caught fire. My grandfather’s bed broke into two and he was thrown onto the floor. I was still under my quilt and saw the fireball sail over me. My grandfather and I received minor scratches. My mother was hurt on her face, neck and hands,” he said.
Suryangshu’s father, a hotelier, is travelling on work. “Basically, modern homes are full of things that can conduct electricity and lightning can “jump” short distances through the air from one conductive surface to another,” said a forensic expert.