The life of the man who was struck by lightning during last night’s thunder storm is out of danger.

• Lightning strike during storm in Sofia claims three lives
  

According to Dr. Valentin Dimitrov, CEO of Pirogov emergency hospital, the patient has sustained 20% burns but is adequate and spent a comfortable night. There are no data of any other life-threatening injuries. The patient was together with the three men who were killed by lightning last night when they hid from the storm under a tree in a neighbourhood garden in Sofia’s centre. In the words of Dr. Dimitrov, the man who survived is in his early 20s, and stated he was Syrian, though he has no ID and his identity is currently being established. Valentin Dimitrov added there was no information regarding his status or what he is doing in the country. An investigation into the cause of the death of the other three men is ongoing.

After the storm that hit Sofia last night the situation is going back to normal, there is no significant damage. According to data of the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, two-thirds of the 18,000-19,000 lightning bolts which hit this country and Southern Romania during yesterday’s thunderstorm were over Bulgaria. Lightning protection expert Hristomir Ivanov said, in an interview with the BNR, that in Sofia, more than 80% of all buildings do not have lightning protection, especially the old residential buildings and apartment blocks. They did originally have protection, he said, but during roof repairs over the years most installations have been removed.