University student killed by lightning in freak incident

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Chai Ming Hui, 23, was sharing an umbrella with two others during a thunderstorm when her mobile phone rang. As she answered the call, a bolt of lightning struck and hit her, the umbrella and her mobile phone. Ming Hui suffered severe burns on her upper chest. She succumbed to her injuries minutes later at the Sarawak Hospital. The incident occurred at about 3pm yesterday when the final-year Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) student was walking back to her hostel at Kota Semarahan with two others. Her friends escaped serious injuries. They received outpatient treatment. Ming Hui was supposed to complete her three-year Human Resources Degree in April and continue her practical training with Telekom Malaysia. Described as one of the top students, her father Chai Koh Jon, 47, said Ming Hui’s death is a big blow to the family. She was the eldest and her family had pinned their hopes on her. She has a younger sister, 18, and a 17-year-old brother. Chai said that his daughter's demise is also a double-blow for the family as his wife is suffering from cancer and is currently undergoing chemotherapy. Koh Jon said Ming Hui usually came back to their house at Star Garden, off Jalan Green for the weekend. "Previously she used to drive to the campus on Mondays and then would return home on Fridays,” he said. “Recently, however, she asked me to send her and pick her up. She would also return on weekends to look after her mother. Now she is gone forever. "I do not know what else to say. My wife is in shock. I only hope that this tragedy will not worsen her condition,” Koh Jon said.