A bolt of lightning struck tarmac at Nagpur’s Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport on Saturday evening injuring two ground engineers. Both were rushed to Kingsway Hospital, where their condition is said to be stable. The incident took place at around 5.30 in the evening. The IndiGo flight Ahmedabad-Nagpur-Lucknow had just landed and the staff was engaged in routine work. The two engineers named Amit Ambatkar (28 years) and Rishi Singh (33 years), whose job was to do regular check-up of the aircraft, were talking on wireless phones. Amit Ambatkar works at Nagpur airport while Rishi Singh has joined Nagpur office on deputation from Uttarakhand.

 

According to the sources, it was raining heavily. Suddenly a bolt of lightning hit the tarmac injuring the two engineers. Other members of the staff contacted Dr Ithesham of Kingsway Hospital. He checked both patients, gave them primary aid and moved them to Kingsway Hospital for further treatment. As per airport sources, aircraft parked a little away was not affected. They were yet to ascertain what attracted the lightning to the tarmac! When contacted at Kingsway Hospital, Dr Atul Somani, the treating Critical Care Specialist said, “It is very difficult to say how the lightning affected the two engineers but they have injuries. One had a major problem at the airport, but our team of doctors in ambulance stabilised him in the ambulance itself. We normalised both the patients in the hospital and now they are feeling better.”