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Three died and two others were badly injured after lighting struck a group of eleven hikers from Jakarta at the peak of Mount Prau in Wonosobo, Central Jakarta on Sunday.
The group arrived at a hikingbasecamp in Patakbenteng Village on Saturday at 1.30 p.m. and continued their hike. They arrived at the mountain's peak at around 2.00 p.m. on Sunday but suddenly heavy rain fell. The group tried to find a shelter and when they were passing a tower, lighting struck their location.
Deden Hidayat Maulana (31), Aditya Agung Dermawan (30) andAdi Setyawan (31) died at the scene.
Photo: Twitter/Sutopo_BNPB
"When one of them was turning on hisphone, suddenly the lightning struck on the victims," saidDisaster MitigationAgency Spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho through his twitter account. The victims then were evacuatedto Setjo Negoro Hospital in Wonosobo for investigation and medical treatment.
Photo: Twitter/Sutopo_BNPB
Until Monday, all hikingroutes in Mount Prau have beentemporarily closed due to the incident.
"People are encouraged to be careful and delay all hiking activities. We're in a transition season. Extreme weather with lightning is possible to occur," Sutopo added.
(brl/red)