Lightning strike leads to electric pole collapse

Too close to home: Fallen tree branches lie on the side of the road in front of the The Jakarta Post’s office building on Jl. Palmerah Barat, Central Jakarta, on Thursday. A heavy rainstorm hit Jakarta on Thursday at around 2 p.m., causing traffic jams and forcing motorcyclists to take shelter. (JP/R. Berto Wedhatama)Lightning struck a tree on Jl. Palmerah Barat, Central Jakarta, near The Jakarta Post’s office building in a heavy rainstorm that began around 2 p.m. on Thursday.

Some of the tree’s branches that were hit by the lightning broke away and fell onto power cables, causing an electric pole to collapse.

Passersby and people who were sitting under the tree immediately fled the scene when the branches came down.

There were no casualties.