Villa Destroyed After Being Struck By Lightning In Bali

The Beraban Beach House Villa in Tegal Mangkep Village, East Selemadeg Tabanan caught on fire after being struck by lightning on Friday night (5/2).

The Head of East Selemadeg Police Department, AKP Ida Bagus Mahendra, explained that according to the information from the security guard of the villa, the building started to burn at 12:15 am.

“The heavy rain was pouring along with thunder that evening, and suddenly lightning struck the roof that was made out of dried reeds,” Mahendra said.

He added that the lightning sparked a fire that immediately spread to the entire building due to its vulnerable building material. Fortunately, the security guard was there during the incident and called the manager of the villa, I Made Suprapta, who lives in the same area.

The two tried to extinguish the fire using what they had access to while waiting for the fire truck to arrive.

“The firefighters finally extinguished the fire at 2:00 am, but unfortunately it had already burnt the lobby to the ground. The property lost an estimated USD 14,235 from the incident” Mahendra added.

 According to the investigation, officers confirmed that the incident was in fact caused by lightning. The building was relatively high and there was no lighting rod installed to prevent it from getting struck.

“We have urged them to install the lightning rod as thunderstorms happen often in this area during the rainy season” Mahendra concluded.