She is suddenly hit by lightning and disappears in a cloud of smoke
She is suddenly hit by lightning and disappears in a cloud of smoke
This is the astonishing moment a woman was struck by a lightning bolt after sheltering under a tree with an umbrella during a thunderstorm.

CCTV footage shows the woman walking along a path in torrential rain , keeping close to the foliage in a desperate bid to stay dry.

But as she walks under a tree to take cover from the rain, she is suddenly hit by lightning and disappears in a cloud of smoke.

When the smoke disperses, the woman can be seen lying on the floor, with her umbrella lying a few feet away.


Incredibly, she survived the ordeal.

In the footage, a man can be seen running up the road to help the woman as she sits dazed on the ground.

The video, believed to have been taken in Zimbabwe, was later posted on Liveleak.

A caption confirms the woman - who has not been identified - escaped alive from the lightning strike.

It is a common myth that carrying a metal object, like an umbrella, will attract lightning.

However, this is not the case, because lightning occurs on too large of a scale to be influenced by small objects on the ground, even if they are metal.

The location of the thunderstorm alone determines where lightning will hit the ground.