12/04/2006

Soldier killed by lightning strike named

The soldier who died after being struck by lightning in County Down at the weekend has been named.

Sergeant Carl Stephenson, 29, from Withernsea in Yorkshire was found on the summit of Slieve Donard in the Mourne Mountains just before 2pm on Saturday by a group of walkers.

Police said the Royal Signalman may have been trying to find shelter from a storm. A post mortem examination has revealed that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.

The body was recovered from the mountaintop by a police search and rescue team, and a Dublin-based coastguard helicopter.

Ed Kilgore from the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team said the death was very unusual.

He added that he has been a member of the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team for more than 25 years and this is the first time he has ever witnessed someone being killed by a lightning strike.

(EF/SP)


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