A BOLT of lightning hit a car battery used to power light at a hut in a rubber plantation at coastal Rayong province severely injuring the owner who was sitting close by and leading to his death a short while later, Thai Rath newspaper reported.
The tragic incident occurred at 2 p.m. yesterday (Sept. 11) after Mr. Manat Duangchai, 39, had gone to the hut from his house, which is around 200 metres away, and was chatting with a friend who had ridden up on his motorcycle.
His friend, Mr. Wuttiporn Darachan, 35, was also injured by this bolt of lightning as he sat astride his motorcycle but was still able to walk to the house to call for help.
Manat’s nephew, Mr. Suriya Nilpetch, 22, said his uncle had used the car battery to power the light in the hut and it was very stormy when the lightning stuck but had not started raining yet. He was sitting two metres away from the battery.
The relatives brought Manas, who was still conscious at that time, to the house, but after a little while he stopped breathing. They performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but without success, so called rescuers who in turn, called the police.
When Pol. Capt. Nopparat Jaipong, deputy head of Pluak Daeng station, arrived he saw Manas lying on the floor and covered with a sheet. There were burn marks on his chest and stomach and the black shorts he was wearing were also burnt.
Meanwhile Wuttipong was first taken Pluak Daeng Hospital for treatment and then transferred to Rayong Hospital. A reporter talked to him during the transfer process, asking how he felt, and he said he was still feeling numb.
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The rubber plantation hut and the car battery struck by lightning killing the owner yesterday. Photos: Thai Rath
