Lightning kills livestock and destroys house in Kinangop

A family in Sariti village, Kinangop Constituency of Nyandarua County is counting losses after their cow and sheep were struck by lightning Tuesday evening.

The lightning also destroyed their kitchen.

Mr Kamau Kariuki, 83, said family members who were in the kitchen narrowly escaped death during the thunderstorm.

The lighting also hit and destroyed an indigenous tree in the compound, a short distance from the kitchen.

“It was raining heavily for the better part of the day and so I decided not to go grazing in the forest but instead feed the livestock at home. I had just dropped the feeds for them when the lighting struck; God saved my life,” said Mr Kariuki.

His daughter, Salome Waithanwa, who was in the kitchen with her children, explained how she and her two daughters escaped death.

HUGE FIRE

She said that she suddenly heard a thunderstorm, then saw a huge fire that shocked and momentarily blinded her and the children.

“First there was lighting which was not very intensive, then a second one came and it was like fire, bright and blood coloured. We recovered from the shock, moved out of the kitchen to find the cow and goat dead,” said Ms Waithanwa.

Mr Kariuki, who spotted the heavy downpour approaching from the neighbouring Aberdare Forest, realised he would not get another opportunity to feed the animals for the night and decided to do it before the rains came.

But the heavy rains pounded as he was still feeding livestock. He abandoned the mission, a decision that he said saved his life.