Two injured

Lightning strikes a hiker’s smartphone

Wild scenes unfolded on Wednesday in the Swiss border canton of Graubünden. An approaching thunderstorm surprised a group of four hikers in the Bernina region near Pontresina. A young man was struck by lightning - and a little later his girlfriend too, just as she was alerting the emergency services.

A couple were out with their daughter and her boyfriend in the Bernina region in Pontresina at around 1 pm on Wednesday when they were surprised by a thunderstorm. The 26-year-old friend was struck by lightning. The man then fell a good ten meters and was moderately injured, according to the police.

While his 25-year-old girlfriend alerted the rescue services, her smartphone was also struck by lightning. Miraculously, the young woman was only slightly injured.

The hikers had to be flown out (symbolic image).(Bild: Kapo Graubünden)

The young couple were rescued by a Rega Air Rescue helicopter with the assistance of a helicopter rescue specialist (RSH) and flown to a hospital in Zurich. The parents and another couple, who were not far from the scene at the time and came to help, were evacuated from the area by another helicopter and flown to the Morteratsch parking lot.