Lightning kills a man on his doorstep near Cacak
An elderly man from a village near Cacak died after a lightning strike outside his home as he tried to take shelter from a passing storm. His wife was seriously injured and taken to hospital.
- A 79-year-old man from a village near Cacak died on June 16 after a lightning strike outside his home.
- He was hit on his own doorstep while trying to take shelter from the storm.
- His wife was seriously injured and taken to hospital.
- The strike also set the house wiring alight.
An elderly man from a village near Cacak lost his life on Tuesday, June 16, when lightning struck him outside his own home. According to early information, the 79-year-old was trying to take shelter from the storm when the bolt caught him right on his doorstep.
His wife suffered serious injuries. She was treated and taken to hospital, where she received care. There is no further official information about her condition at this stage.
The strike was powerful enough to set the home’s electrical wiring on fire, adding material damage to the tragedy while neighbours and emergency services moved in to help.
How did the tragedy happen?
By unofficial accounts, there was no large storm that day in the usual sense. Rain was falling, but without the violent scale that normally accompanies severe weather. What set the day apart were a few powerful claps of thunder that rolled over the area.
One of those strikes proved fatal. The lightning flashed at the moment the man found himself in the open, just outside the house. Safety experts have warned for years that lightning does not pick its spot and that even seemingly harmless weather can carry a deadly risk.
Lightning fatalities are not common in Serbia, but almost every season brings a case or two. The greatest risk comes in open spaces, on hilltops and near isolated buildings, where the electrical charge more easily finds the nearest point to discharge through.
What is advised during a thunderstorm?
Emergency services warn that during thunderstorm activity it is safest to stay indoors, away from windows, doors and metal fixtures. Being outdoors, especially near trees or on raised ground, sharply increases the risk.
The advice is also to avoid using water and devices connected to the power grid while a storm lasts, because lightning can travel through plumbing and electrical wiring. In this case, according to early data, the bolt did set off a fire in the home’s wiring.
A death on the doorstep itself, at a spot that should offer shelter, is a reminder of how unpredictable nature can be and how thin the line is between safety and danger during summer storms. Such events stand as a warning that even brief exposure to a storm can have grave consequences.
In your area, is a short and seemingly harmless storm taken seriously, or is the danger of lightning still being underestimated?
