Thunderstorm claims 12 lives in northern India

Thunderstorm in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in the past 24 hours has left at least 12 people dead, said officials on Thursday.

A disaster management official said, “While four people died in Etawah district, three were killed in Mathura, two in Firozabad, and one each in Agra, Aligarh and Kanpur districts. While some people died after lightning struck them, some were killed as trees, power poles fell on them.”

He added that officials were assessing the damage in the affected districts.

India had earlier this week put as many as 13 of its states, including Uttar Pradesh, and two central government-territories on high storm alert for 48 hours, reports Xinhua news agency.

Last week, more than 125 people died and over 300 others were injured in fierce dust storms in northern and western India. The storms also brought down electricity poles, uprooted trees, destroyed houses and killed livestock in five states, including Uttar Pradesh.