A person holds up a hailstone during a violent hailstorm in Girona, Spain, on August 30
(Picture: Sicus Carbonell via REUTERS)A baby has died after being struck by a giant hailstone during a freak storm in Spain.
The 20-month-old is said to have been hit on the head by a ball of ice measuring 10cm across on Tuesday evening, before dying in hospital the following day, local news outlets report.
The incident happened during a violent storm in the city of Girona, in Catalonia.
Catalonian newspaper el Periodico reported the child had been in an outdoor courtyard at home with her father on Tuesday, when she was struck on the head.
Pedregada molt destructiva fa una estona a Forallac, la pitjor que he viscut mai, amb pedres de gel de fins a 9cm de diàmetre. S'han trencat teules, vidres de cotxe, testos, lones, ...
— Otger Fortià (@otgerfortia) August 30, 2022
@eltempsTV3 @TempsCatalunya @TomasMolinaB @Vakapiupiu @MeteoBarrufet @Jordisolerramio pic.twitter.com/yUBKidkj1K
News outlet Murcia Today said the girl was hit by a hailstone “measuring more than 10cm in diameter”.
El Periodico reports that 67 people have been treated for injuries following the storm, most of them for minor bruises.
The hailstorm is the latest in a period of extreme weather for Spain, which has been ravaged by an intense heatwave and wildfires in recent months.
