{"id":48424,"date":"2026-10-01T17:11:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T15:11:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/?p=48424"},"modified":"2026-10-01T17:23:50","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T15:23:50","slug":"thunder-lightning-strike-kills-four-sspdf-soldiers-in-raja-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/01\/thunder-lightning-strike-kills-four-sspdf-soldiers-in-raja-county\/","title":{"rendered":"THUNDER: Lightning strike kills four SSPDF soldiers in Raja County"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Deng Athian<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Four soldiers of the South Sudan People\u2019s Defense Forces (SSPDF) have been killed after lightning struck a military barracks in Sirimalaka, Raja County, Western Bahr el Ghazal State, police have confirmed.<\/p>\n

State Police Spokesperson Colonel Santino Uduol Mayen said the incident occurred during the past week when lightning struck the military facility, killing the four soldiers.<\/p>\n

He said police were yet to release further details about the identities of the deceased or whether other people were injured in the incident.<\/p>\n

Lightning strikes are a recurring hazard during South Sudan\u2019s rainy season, particularly during periods of heavy thunderstorms.<\/p>\n

People in rural communities, military camps, schools, markets, and other areas without adequate lightning protection can be exposed when storms develop.<\/p>\n

International weather-safety guidance advises people to seek shelter as soon as they hear thunder. A substantial enclosed building is considered the safest shelter, while a fully enclosed vehicle with a hard roof can also provide protection.<\/p>\n

People caught outdoors during a thunderstorm should avoid open fields, isolated trees, hilltops, water bodies, and other exposed locations.<\/p>\n

They are advised to move to a safe shelter and remain there for at least 30 minutes after the last sound of thunder.<\/p>\n

In South Sudan, communities, schools, military facilities, and workplaces can reduce risks by monitoring approaching storms, identifying safe buildings where people can take shelter, and suspending outdoor activities when thunderstorms are nearby.<\/p>\n

Separately, police reported several unrelated incidents in Wau during the same period.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Hai Jebel Kheir, near Medan Rabeta, a boda boda rider identified as Bobai Arkangelo Matthew was attacked by passengers he had transported from Hai Lokoloko. The suspects reportedly shot him and took his motorcycle, and he later died from his injuries,\u201d Colonel Santino said.<\/p>\n

Police also reported that a 32-year-old man was found dead in the Hai Jebel residential area on the morning of September 28 in what police described as an apparent suicide.<\/p>\n

Colonel Santino said the circumstances surrounding the death remain under investigation. The case has been registered as Criminal Case Number 11 under Section 59 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009.<\/p>\n

Police said investigations into the reported incidents are continuing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Deng Athian Four soldiers of the South Sudan People\u2019s Defense Forces (SSPDF) have been killed after lightning struck a military barracks in Sirimalaka, Raja County, Western Bahr el Ghazal State, police have confirmed. State Police Spokesperson Colonel Santino Uduol Mayen said the incident occurred during the past week when[Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":48425,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[80,79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48424","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","category-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Lighthening.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48424","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48424"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48424\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48426,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48424\/revisions\/48426"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48424"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48424"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48424"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}