Lightning strikes, fires, storms kill 90 in Cambodia in Jan-July

Phnom Penh: Lightning strikes, fires and storms had claimed 90 lives in Cambodia in the first seven months of 2023, the spokesperson for the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) said.

"From January to July this year, 59 people were killed by lightning strikes, 23 by blazes and eight by storms," NCDM spokesperson Soth Kim Kolmony told Xinhua news agency on Tuesday.

Besides the fatalities, thunderbolts, fires and storms also injured 217 other people, he said, adding that lightning strikes also killed 87 cattle, Xinhua news agency reported.

"To avoid the dangers of lightning strikes, people, particularly those living in rural areas, should stay in houses or shelters when there is storm or rain," he said.

According to the official, lightning strikes and storms often happen during the rainy season from May to October in the Southeast Asian country.