A grieving 50-year-old Malaysian man was helping oversee the funeral of his father at a cemetery near here yesterday when a bolt of lightning struck the location, grazing him.
Mazlan, who is a Lance Corporal said he had lost his father on Sunday and he was overseeing the funeral, when a bolt of lightning struck the cemetery, where he was, reports New Straits Times.
Malaysian man loses dad, struck by lightning, has an accident – All in 1 day
He said, he was at the Kampung Tebing Tinggi Muslim cemetery, clearing his father’s freshly-covered grave of digging implements following the burial, when the lightning struck at 5:30pm.
“There was an explosive sound which emanated from near where I was standing. Suddenly, I felt a burning heat course through my body.
“I also realised I was deafened. Then my body started going numb, and I grabbed onto a nearby fence before collapsing and losing consciousness,” he said.
Most of the funeral attendees had begun heading home during the incident but those who were close by witnessed the incident and rushed to his aid.
An ambulance was called and he was rushed to the Segamat Hospital where he was to receive treatment.
However, halfway to the hospital, the ambulance skidded and crashed into guardrails on a highway leading to the hospital.
As a result of the crash, a large breathing assistance machine fell on his right foot, injuring him.
Despite his third major brush with bad luck in just 24 hours, Wan Ab Mutalib felt fortunate that he was not more seriously hurt in the crash.
“I was treated at the Emergency Unit and was admitted to Ward 3 for overnight observation.
“I was discharged today (Monday). I am thankful that all I suffered was body weakness and an injured foot.”
