A Russian couple survived being simultaneously struck by the same fork of lightning as they clung to one another in terror, online newspaper Pravda reported Tuesday.
Vladimir Chumbasov was hit in the shoulder as he sat on a terrace outside his home in Novokubansk, southern Russia, watching storm clouds gather overhead.
He claims the bolt, one of two that struck his deck area in quick succession, passed through his body before shocking his wife, who was pressed up against him in fear.Amazingly, both of them survived.
“We jumped up, and it hit me in the right shoulder, went through my stomach, struck my wife’s elbow that she was pushing against my side and came out of her left leg," Chumbasov, 56, told Pravda.
"I lost consciousness just for several seconds thinking that I was hanging between life and death. The lightning burnt my T-shirt. I wonder why it struck the wooden terrace if there was a metal roof and electric power lines nearby."
The couple's 26-year-old son was standing just feet away but was unhurt. He raised the alarm and his parents were rushed to the hospital, where they have since recovered.
“We haven’t discovered anything unusual with ourselves yet," added Mr Chumbasov.
"We’ve heard stories saying that survivors of lightning attacks may have fortune-telling abilities or do other unusual things afterwards. Nothing like that has happened to us. "We hope that the lightning was a good sign."
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