Phnom Penh (AFP) May 7, 2009 – Lightning strikes have killed about 50 Cambodians in the first four months of the year, a government official said Thursday. The number of such deaths was up from the same period last year, said a deputy head at the National Committee for Disaster Management, Ly Thuch, without giving a comparable figure for 2008.

At least 95 Cambodians were killed by lightning last year, more than double the 2007 total and the highest-ever annual tally in the country. “We have noticed that the climate has changed and there have been so many lightning strikes,” Ly Thuch said, adding that 10 people were killed by lightning last week alone. Most of the victims were farmers, he added.

Lightning kills 50 Cambodians in four months: official

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