Tragedy struck in a village in Bulgaria when the coach of soccer team was fatally struck by lightning during a match.
The state news agency BTA reported that the deadly incident happened on Sunday during a friendly game between the teams of Lessichovo and Chernogorovo — two villages in central Bulgaria.
Ivan Ranchev, the 41-year-old coach of the visiting team, was killed on the spot by a bolt of lightning when a heavy thunderstorm hit the village shortly after the game started.
An ambulance was sent immediately, but medics could only confirm his death.
The report said that a few other players were knocked down by the shock wave, but were not seriously injured.
The mayor of Lessichovo, Dimitar Vrinchev, told local media that the soccer match started at 6.30 p.m. and shortly afterward “it started to rain and literally all of a sudden the sky lit up.”
“There was loud thunder and lightning hit the field,” Vrinchev told local media. “It hit exactly on Ivan Ranchev and a football player from our team. They both fell to the ground.”
