A local Fulani herder, Sarkin Amaru, has lost 20 cattle in a deadly lightning strike in Tatale on May 25, 2026.
According to reports monitored by Channel One TV, the tragedy unfolded within minutes.
Amaru was seeking shelter inside his hut as the storm intensified.
Then came a deafening crack of thunder, followed by an eerie silence, then the thud of bodies hitting the wet ground.
“I rushed out after I saw the first animal fall,” Amaru recounted. “But before I could reach it, others were already collapsing around me. Within moments, more than 20 were gone.”
The cattle, he says, were his only lifeline, the sole source of income for his family. Now, with a single flash of lightning, that lifeline has been erased.
Local authorities have not yet confirmed the exact cause, though preliminary reports point to a direct lightning strike on the herd.
Amaru is now making a desperate appeal to the government, the district assembly, and charitable organisations for help to restock his livestock and rebuild his livelihood.
“It wasn’t just cattle that died,” he said. “It was my children’s future.”
