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Three persons died after being struck by lightning during heavy rain for over an hour in Jayashankar Bhupalpally district on Wednesday. Among the dead were two farmers and a woman who were all working in the fields when they were hit by lightning.

Farmer Vanga Ravi (48) died in his farm land in Ponagallu village in Regonda mandal and Katam Raghupathi Reddy (25), also a farmer, was struck by lightning while he was with his parents in their fields in Shatrajpalli village in Malhar mandal. While Arepalli Varamma (56) was felled by lightning while she was working in the fields in Gopalapuam village in Chityala mandal.

Following the deaths, authorities urged farmers to not venture into their fields during heavy rain and also advised against taking shelter under trees. In Wanaparthy district, collector Shaik Yaseem Basha had posters printed advising farmers on precautions to be taken. The public has also been advised to avoid open areas during rain.

Lightning has led to quite a few deaths since the beginning of monsoon. In some cases, people were lucky to survive despite being hit.

In June, a woman, her child and another man died in lightning strikes at various places in Kumuram Bheem, Asifabad. In Khammam, an 18-year-old died when he was struck by lightning while he was under a tree.