A lightning bolt came and took both of them away.

A moment when a group of people engaged in farming activities in the Rambewa Nabadagaswewa paddy fields were resting under the shade of a tree for lunch, suddenly turned into a great tragedy in an unexpected way. This was due to a lightning strike that instantly snatched away the lives of a brave mother who bore the entire burden of her family and a young woman who had come seeking a livelihood.

This unfortunate incident was reported on the 20th of last month, between 2:00 PM and 2:30 PM, in the paddy fields of Rambewa Nabadagaswewa 10 Ela, also known as 10 Colony, which falls under the Anuradhapura Kallanchiya Police Division. The lightning strike occurred while they were under two Gansuriya trees for lunch, at the moment they had finished work in the paddy field and raindrops began to fall. As a result of the accident, a 58-year-old mother residing in the Boruluhinna area of Rambewa and a 26-year-old young woman named D.M. Thusharika alias Dulari, residing in the Embilipitiya area, died. Although the deceased 58-year-old mother was identified as Kaluarachchi Hemali in police reports, her daughter states that her mother's name is K.H. Malani. Furthermore, a 61-year-old woman named Gunapala's Ranjani, residing in Nabadagaswewa, sustained serious injuries and was hospitalized.

Mr. G. Gunadasa, 66, who witnessed this horrific accident firsthand, was plowing Mrs. Ranjani's paddy field with a tractor at that moment. He stated that he had never witnessed such a tragedy in his sixty-six years of agricultural life and recalled that the lightning strike hit with a loud noise, like a bomb exploding. He said with great shock that when he turned around after hearing the sound as soon as he moved the tractor forward with the plow down, he saw all three people under the tree fall to the ground at once.

Mr. Gunadasa, who immediately acted after the accident, stated that when he got off the tractor and ran to check, two people were already unconscious. However, since Mrs. Ranjani, who had been thrown into the field, was barely conscious, he carried her on his shoulder, seated her on the tractor's plow, and carefully brought her home. Subsequently, with the help of local residents, the injured were admitted to Rambewa Hospital by van and car. There, it was confirmed that the mother and the young woman had died, and Mrs. Ranjani, who had sustained serious injuries, was transferred to Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital for further treatment.

There was also someone who miraculously survived this accident. That was the 26-year-old husband of the deceased 26-year-old Thusharika. No one expected this couple, who had come from Embilipitiya seeking casual labor for their livelihood and were staying at Mrs. Malani's house in the Nabadagaswewa area, to face such a fate. A short while before the lightning strike, he had finished eating and gone to a rocky area a little further away to get his motorcycle before getting wet in the rain. Although his life was saved because the lightning struck during the short time he was straightening his motorcycle, he had the misfortune of witnessing firsthand the horrific sight of his wife and two others being thrown in three different directions amidst the huge smoke that rose with the lightning strike.

The loss of her 58-year-old mother, who bore the entire burden of her ailing father and family, is unbearable for her daughter, 26-year-old Ishara Madhubashini. The mother, who engaged in farming activities without hesitation to strengthen the family's economy after her father fell ill, was also preparing to celebrate her birthday on the 8th of next month. She said with tears in her eyes that she had never in her wildest dreams imagined that her mother, who worked with the strength of her mind rather than her body despite several illnesses, would die in such a way from a lightning strike. She is also deeply shocked by the fact that the life of the innocent young woman who was staying at their house was also claimed by the lightning.

The Anuradhapura Kallanchiya Police are conducting further investigations into this incident. While the lives of a courageous mother who toiled with the earth, sweating profusely, and a young woman who came for casual labor with the hope of building her future, were extinguished by a lightning strike in this manner, this sudden loss has left an indelible tragedy not only for two families but for the entire region.