Australian Soccer Player Killed by Lightning in Malaysia

Two Melaka United football players were struck by lightning during a training session at Hang Jebat Stadium in Malaysia on 5 April 2016. 21 year-old defense man Afiq Azuan and 18 year-old Stefan Petroviski were rushed to the hospital after a cloud-to-ground lightning strike hit the field near the goal post. Azuan regained consciousness and was stabilized in the hospital but Petroviski, who reportedly stopped breathing when the strike happened, was unable to recover. The Australian teenager passed away after weeks of being unconscious on Sunday 1 May at Putra Specialist Hospital.

Earth Networks Total Lightning Network captured the lightning strike that injured Azuan and later killed Petroviski. The strike (see below) happened at 08:37 UTC or around 5pm local time. It is believed that the electrical current from the lightning traveled through the ground and into the players.

Fellow players and coaches report that they were caught off guard by the lightning because it was not raining in the area at the time. The below video powered by our Total Lightning Network shows a strong storm system containing high frequencies of lightning just south of Malacca during the day this tragedy occurred. Occurring at 08:38am UTC, the first lightning strike in Malacca is the strike that killed Petroviski. There were no other lightning strikes before this one in the vicinity to serve as a warning for the practicing soccer club.

Unfortunate situations like this can help to be avoided. Since there was no rain or other lightning strikes to serve as a warning for this approaching danger, the only way to prepare and protect oneself from freak accidents like this is to invest in a lightning detection technology and heed its warnings. Seeking shelter after seeing rain and lightning or hearing thunder can oftentimes be too late. Earth Networks Dangerous Thunderstorm Alerts and the WeatherBug brand mobile app with Spark capabilities can help people stay safe when severe weather is on the way.