A 53-year-old farmer, Nazrul Islam Manju, was killed by a lightning strike in Bhola’s Tazumuddin. The incident occurred around 11:30 a.m. Saturday (Sept. 5) at Bason Char, a sandbar that has emerged in the Meghna River in the upazila’s Chandpur union.
The farmer, Nazrul Islam Manju, was a resident of Ward No. 6 in the upazila’s Chandpur union and the son of the late Badiuzzaman.
According to local sources, Manju was working in his field when clouds suddenly gathered around 11:30 a.m. and a storm with rain began. At one point, a loud clap of lightning struck, severely injuring him and knocking him to the ground.
Nearby farmers rescued him and took him to Tazumuddin Hospital, where the attending physician declared him dead. Relatives rushed to the scene after hearing the news.
Tazumuddin police station’s officer-in-charge, Mizanur Rahman, confirmed the death, saying a police team was at the scene preparing an inquest report following the lightning death of farmer Nazrul Islam Manju. Legal procedures will follow once the report is complete.
Locals said farmers in Tazumuddin’s vast sandbars and farmland must work in the fields during the monsoon season, often putting them at risk while working in open fields during lightning storms. They called for greater awareness about farmers taking shelter during lightning and for planting lightning-resistant palm trees.