Bhubaneswar: At least four persons, including a couple, were killed in separate incidents of lightning strikes in Odisha today.

The deceased have been identified as Baneswara Nayak and his wife Sanjulata Nayak of Ghatagaon area of Keonjhar, Sunia Mallick of Panikoili in Jajpur and Jhunu Patra of Baisinga in Mayurbhanj.

As per reports, lightning struck Baneswar and his Sanjulata while they were taking shelter under a thatched structure at Rutishila village during thunderstorm in the afternoon. The husband-wife duo died on the spot.

Similarly, lightning struck Sunia while he was working on a paddy field at Sathipur under Panikoili police limits in Jajpur.

The villagers rescued him and rushed him to the Jajpur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH). However, he was declared dead on arrival by the doctors, reports said.

The Panikoili police seized the body and sent it for postmortem after registering a case of unnatural death.

Jhunu Patra (37) of Bidukudia village under Baisinga police limits in Mayurbhanj fell unconscious after she was struck by the lightning while grazing cattle in the afternoon.  

Jhunu, a differently-abled woman, was immediately taken to a nearby hospital, where she was declared dead, reports said.

On being informed, the police seized the body and sent it for postmortem.