2 dead, 7 injured in lightning strike in Jharkhand

Two persons died and seven others were injured in a lightning strike at Silwar near Jharkhand's Hazaribag on Tuesday while returning from a Rath Yatra procession, an official said.

The incident took place around 4.45 pm along a stretch of National Highway-100, he said.

"Two devotees were killed and seven are injured," Sub-Divisional Officer, Hazaribag Sadar, Vidyabhushan Kumar, told PTI.

Kumar said the injured have been taken to Sheikh Bhikhari Medical College and Hospital in Hazaribag.

Meanwhile, the weather department issued an alert for medium to severe thunderstorms in the state for the next three days from Tuesday.