Italian mourner killed by lightning while scattering brother's ashes

A man has been killed after being struck by lightning as he scattered his brother's ashes on an Italian mountain. The tragedy happened as Federico Dean, 41, stood at the beauty spot favoured by his younger brother Matteo, 35, who had been killed in a motorbike accident. As he scattered the ashes a violent thunderstorm swept in and journalist Federico was killed instantly after being struck by the million volt lightning bolt.

Police and mountain rescue teams at the Montasio range near Trieste on the border with Slovenia in north-east Italy were called to the scene but there was nothing they could do and his body was taken to a local mortuary. His friend Gabriele Franco, 35, who was with him and who had raised the alarm suffered severe burns and was treated in hospital and doctors expect him to make a full recovery.



A police spokesman in Trieste said: 'It's a tragic combination of circumstances. The victim was in the mountains to scatter the ashes of his dead brother in his favourite spot when he himself was killed. 'The thunderstorm came out of nowhere as often happens in the mountains in the summer and there was nothing that could be done - he was in an exposed area and was killed instantly.

'The force of the lightning bolt threw him from the mountain and he fell about 100 metres but the electricity from the lightening would have probably killed him straight away. His friend who was with him and who raised the alarm suffered burns but was otherwise uninjured.'