Church struck by lightning in Uganda

At least 14 people were killed and 34 injured when lightning struck a church in the Palabek refugee camp in the Lamwo district of northern Uganda.

“The victims were attending a church service prior to the incident,” reports said.

Worshippers were gathered to pray when a thunderstorm broke out, followed by a flash of lightning, police said.

Police did not specify the nationalities of the victims, most of whom were young, including a nine-year-old girl, but, like other camps in the region, the Palabek camp, home to some 80,000 people, is mostly hosting refugees who fled South Sudan after the start of the civil war that broke out shortly after its independence in 2011.

Accidents due to lightning are particularly frequent and have even been fatal in Uganda, particularly in schools, due to buildings often lacking lightning conductors.

In July, a similar incident occurred in the Nebbi district in north-western Uganda, injuring 77 students gathered for a sports competition.