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Lightning killed 16 members of my family on my wedding day – Groom
They had been killed by lightning on the way to the ceremony.
Dressed in their finest saris and suits, his family members boarded a boat to join Mamun, when a heavy storm struck. As the rain lashed down the boat pulled over and they took shelter under a tin shed on the riverbank, when they were hit.
Bangladesh, which is blighted by extreme weather and heavy storms, suffers an average of 300 deaths by lightning every year, according to the UN.
That’s compared with fewer than 20 annually in the United States, which has almost double the population.
It’s a heavy burden for the South Asian nation, and for many like Mamun, who is speaking for the first time about what happened on that day in August 2021.
The 21-year-old was getting ready at his in-laws’ home in the Shibganj area in the country’s north-west, when he heard the crackle of thunder, minutes before he got the gut-wrenching news.
He rushed to his family, where he was confronted with a scene of chaos and confusion.
“Some people were hugging the bodies,” Mamun recalls, “the injured were crying out in pain… children were screaming. I was at a loss. I could not even decide who I should go to first.”
Mamun lost his father, grandparents, cousins, uncles and aunts. His mother wasn’t on the boat and survived the lightning attack.
“When I found my father’s dead body I simply burst into tears. I was so shocked I fell sick,” Mamun says.
Later that evening, the funerals of his relatives took place – the wedding feast they were meant to enjoy was instead distributed to the homeless.
Mamun later got married, but says he doesn’t celebrate his wedding anniversary as it triggers painful memories. “After the tragic incident, now I am really scared of rain and thunder.”
Lightning is a big killer in Bangladesh, claiming more lives annually than floods.
The number of reported deaths due to lightning has also risen steeply, from just dozens per year in the 1990s.
Nasa, the UN and the government of Bangladesh cite increased storminess due to climate change as a reason for the increase in deadly strikes.
“Global warming, environmental changes, living patterns are all factors for the increasing death toll due to lightning,” Md Mijanur Rahman, the director general of Bangladesh’s disaster management division, told the BBC.
Such is the seriousness, that the government has added lightning strikes to the official list of natural disasters the country faces which includes floods, cyclones, earthquakes and droughts.
The majority of victims of lightning are farmers, who are vulnerable to the elements as they work the fields through the rainy monsoon months in the spring and summer.
A football shirt, hanging on a rickety fence, overlooking a field in the Satkhira region of Bangladesh is a poignant reminder of one of the victims.
Just days earlier, the shirt had been worn by Abdullah as he went into the vast rice fields to do his day’s work.
Now, draped over the wooden barrier, the Barcelona football shirt is singed and frayed, the burnt edges of thread show where the lightning left its mark in May this year.
Abdullah’s wife of three decades, Rehana, took me to the field to tell me what happened the day she lost her husband.
It was bright and sunny as Abdullah and a group of farmers went to harvest rice. By late afternoon a heavy storm began, and a lightning bolt struck her husband.
“Some of the other farmers brought him to this roadside shop,” Rehana says, pointing to a small shack along the lane. “By then he was already dead.”
The couple had recently taken out a loan to build a second room to extend their modest home.
Inside, the couple’s 14-year-old son Masood is reading a book. With no primary earner, Rehana fears she will be left with a lifetime of debt and wonders how she will pay for his studies.
“The fear gripped me so deeply that now if I see a cloud in the sky, I don’t even dare to let my son go outside any more,” she says consumed by tears.
Lightning is a growing concern in other countries too – including neighbouring India which has also seen a rise in the number of strikes in recent years, but a significant reduction in the number of fatalities due to a number of initiatives.
There are efforts in Bangladesh to do more to reduce the number of deaths due to lightning.
Activists say more tall trees need to be planted in remote rural areas to absorb the impact of the strikes, especially in places which have borne the brunt of deforestation.
They also call for a large-scale programme to build lightning sheds, so farmers can take safe shelter, and for broader early warning systems to alert people about possible storms.
One challenge is the poor connectivity and lack of mobile usage in the areas where people are the most vulnerable.
A lack of awareness is also a challenge. Many in the country don’t realise how dangerous lightning can be – few people anywhere in the world expect to be hit by a thunderbolt.
Farmer Ripon Hossen – who was with Abdullah the day he was killed – never imagined what lightning would look like up close, until it struck.
“There was a big loud sound, and then I saw lots of flashing lights,” he recalled. “It was as if a disk of fire had fallen on us. I felt a great electric shock and fell to the ground.
“After a while, I opened my eyes and saw that Abdullah was dead.”
Ripon can’t believe he survived. He says he’s terrified to work in the open, but in this impoverished agricultural area farming is the only source of income for him.
“I cry whenever I think of my friend Abdullah,” he says.
“When I close my eyes at night, all the memories of that day return like a flashback. I can’t console myself.”
Motorists and travellers using the Benin-Agbor-Asaba route have been stranded for days as severe traffic congestion continues to disrupt movement between the South-South, South-East and Lagos.
The gridlock, which has reportedly persisted for about five days, has left motorists spending long hours on the road, with some travellers unable to reach their destinations.
The situation has been attributed largely to the poor condition of sections of the road, which has been further worsened by heavy rainfall in the area.
Minister of Works, Engr David Umahi and some National Assembly members inspecting Benin-Agbor road on Tuesday
The rain has reportedly made some portions of the road difficult to navigate, resulting in vehicles becoming stuck and worsening the already severe congestion.
The route is a major link for motorists travelling between Lagos and several states in the South-South and South-East, making the prolonged gridlock a major concern for travellers, transport operators and motorists.
Some motorists have reportedly been forced to spend extended periods on the road as efforts to navigate the affected sections have proved difficult.
The development has also raised concerns about the impact of the bad road on the movement of goods and passengers, particularly during the rainy season.
Travellers using the route have called for urgent intervention to restore movement and prevent further deterioration of the situation.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, on Tuesday led an urgent federal intervention on the congested Benin-Agbor-Asaba Expressway following President Bola Tinubu’s order to ease the hardship faced by stranded motorists.
Umah’s arrival in Edo State was disclosed by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Francis Nwaze, who shared a video of the minister’s on-site inspection on his official X handle.
“Umahi arrives in Benin, Edo State, to address the congestion on the Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road,” Nwaze posted, adding in a subsequent update, “Umahi arrives Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road to resolve issues surrounding the road, which was handed over to concessionaire on PPP Basis since 2025.”
In an official press statement issued on Tuesday, Nwaze confirmed that Tinubu ordered immediate corrective measures on both the Benin-Agbor-Asaba axis and the deplorable Ifaki-Kabba-Ado Ekiti road spanning Ekiti and Kogi States.
To execute the directive, Umahi reportedly deployed the Minister of State for Works alongside ministry officials to commence remedial works on the Ekiti-Kogi corridor.
“While the intervention team moved into Ekiti and Kogi States, Umahi himself headed to Benin, Edo State, alongside members of the National Assembly Works Committees, to initiate a similar coordinated intervention on the Benin-Agbor-Asaba road.
“The Benin meeting is expected to bring together key stakeholders, including representatives of the Edo and Delta State Governments and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), with the aim of finding immediate solutions to the challenges confronting motorists on the strategic corridor,” the statement partly read.
The FCT Police Command has identified officers accused of allegedly extorting N40,000 from a resident along Wuye-Utako Road, near Salem Church, in the Federal Capital Territory.
The Command said the officers depicted in a video circulating on social media had been identified and were in custody.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the command, SP Josephine Adeh, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.
“The attention of the Commissioner of Police, FCT Police Command, CP Ahmed Muhammed Sanusi, PhD, FCAI, has been drawn to a video circulating on social media alleging that police officers of the FCT Police Command extorted an FCT resident of the sum of Forty Thousand Naira (₦40,000) along Wuye – Utako Road, by Salem Church, within the Federal Capital Territory.
“The officers depicted in the video have been identified and are in custody,” the statement read.
The video, which began circulating widely on social media around August 24, features a man who claimed that on August 20, 2026, a police officer in Abuja collected ₦40,000 from him even after verifying that his documents were complete.
The man shared footage showing a receipt and a conversation after he returned to the checkpoint.
Adeh said the Command had also invited the complainant to the FCT Police Command Headquarters to give an official statement on the incident to aid investigation and disciplinary action.
Country music legend and Hollywood star, Dolly Parton, has died at the age of 80, her family has announced.
Parton’s nephew, Brian Seaver, announced her death on Tuesday in a video shared on her social media account, describing the moment as one of “absolute pride and great sadness”. The family did not immediately disclose the cause of death.
The Tennessee-born singer, songwriter, actress and philanthropist enjoyed a career spanning more than six decades and became one of the most recognisable figures in American popular culture.
Late Dolly Parton
Known as the “Queen of Country”, Parton sold more than 100 million records worldwide and earned numerous honours, including multiple Grammy Awards. Her enduring hits included “Jolene”, “I Will Always Love You”, “9 to 5” and “Coat of Many Colors”.
Her death came after a period of health challenges. In May, Parton announced the cancellation of a Las Vegas performance, revealing that she had been undergoing treatment for kidney stones and was also dealing with problems affecting her immune and digestive systems.
Just days before her death, Parton had indicated that she was still determined to work despite acknowledging that she had slowed down following the death of her husband, Carl Dean, in March 2025.
“Even though I’m still healin’, I’m still workin’!” she said, insisting that she still had many things she wanted to accomplish.
Parton was born on January 19, 1946, in Locust Ridge, Tennessee, the fourth of 12 children in a poor family. She grew up in the Appalachian region, where her mother’s love for traditional music helped nurture her passion for singing and songwriting.
She began performing as a child and moved to Nashville shortly after graduating from high school in 1964. Her songwriting talent soon earned her recognition, before she established herself as a major recording artiste.
Parton’s breakthrough included “Jolene”, which became one of her signature songs. Her composition “I Will Always Love You” later became a global hit for Whitney Houston after the singer recorded it for the 1992 film The Bodyguard.
Beyond music, Parton built a successful acting career, starring in films including 9 to 5, Steel Magnolias and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. She also became a prominent businesswoman through Dollywood, the theme park she established in Tennessee in 1986.
Her influence extended well beyond entertainment. Parton founded the Dollywood Foundation and its Imagination Library initiative, which provides free books to children, making childhood literacy one of the major causes associated with her name.
She also donated $1 million to coronavirus research at Vanderbilt University in 2020, funding that contributed to research that later helped in the development of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Parton’s personal life also attracted public interest. She married Carl Dean in 1966, and the couple remained together for nearly six decades until his death in 2025. They had no children.
Despite her global fame, Parton remained closely connected to her Tennessee roots and used her success to support communities, education, healthcare and other charitable causes.
Her death brings to an end the life of an entertainer whose influence crossed generations, musical genres and national boundaries, leaving behind a vast catalogue of songs and a philanthropic legacy that extended far beyond country music.
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