Three persons were killed on Friday after being struck by lightning in East Burdwan district of West Bengal, as rain and thunderstorms hit Kolkata and other districts, disrupting normal life including train services, officials said.
A 19-year-old boy and a 39-year-old man died when they were struck by lightning while working in the field at Natualpally village of Budbud area, said a police officer.
Another person died in another lightning strike at Manteswar, the officer said.
The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) of Kolkata said a squall passed over Kolkata (Alipore) with maximum wind speed of 68 kmph at 5.26 pm, followed by gusty northwesterly wind.
Various parts of Howrah, South and North 24 Parganas, West and East Midnapore, Bankura, Purulia, Hooghly, Nadia districts reported uprooted trees and electric poles, and damage to shops and other properties.
In Kolkata, uprooted trees at Park Street, Dalhousie and Subodh Mallick Square caused traffic disruption in many areas. Three agencies -- the fire brigade, Kolkata Municipal Corporation and police -- deployed personnel to remove the fallen trees.
"All the blockades created by the fallen trees will be cleared in two-three hours," police said.
Officials had predicted "thunderstorm with gusty wind, lightning and light to moderate rain likely to affect parts of Kolkata, Howrah and South 24 Parganas district(s) for two-to-three hours starting around 5 pm.
Commuters faced major disruption in train services as trees fell onto the overhead wires which power the trains.
"Train services in the suburbs mainly South division of Sealdah and in Howrah division were disrupted for a short while as a Nor'wester ripped through, accompanied by scattered rain," Eastern Railway officials said.
The sudden rescheduling of trains severely inconvenienced commuters.
3 Budding Hockey Players Killed, 5 Injured In Lightning Strike In Jharkhand: Cops 6 Dead As Lightning Strike Causes Park Pavilion To Collapse In China Heavy Rain Pound Kolkata, Neighbouring Areas, More Showers Predicted Vandalism At Kolkata Hospital Where Doctor Was Raped, Tear Gas Fired 150 mg Semen In Kolkata Doctor's Body, Suspect Gang-Rape: Parents To Court 2 French Rafale Jets Collide Mid-Air, Instructor, Pilot Missing Professor 'Digitally Arrested' For 12 Days By Scammers, Loses Rs 12 Lakh Independence Day 2024 Live Updates: PM Modi To Address Nation From Red Fort PM Modi To Address Nation From Red Fort On 78th Independence Day Today Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.