Lightning kills pregnant Amish woman on due date

An Amish woman picking blackberries with her family died today when lightning from a surprise thunderstorm struck her.

Mary H. Yoder, 36, took cover under a pine tree when the storm arrived in rural Pennsylvania, the Tribune-Review reported.

Yoder’s unborn child also died. Police said the woman was nine months pregnant and today was her due date.

She was in the forest with her husband and their two other children who took shelter underneath another tree and survived, The Associated Press said.

More from GlobalPost: 10 dead, mass power outages after thunderstorms in Eastern States

The incident happened about 11 am near Yoder’s home in Summit, Penn.

Yoder and the fetus died in the woods of Somerset County, police said.

According to National Geographic, lightning can strike with blue sky overhead from a storm as far as 10 miles away.

Between 1959 and 2003, 3,696 people died from lightning strikes in the United States, National Geographic said.

Summit is just south of Erie, Penn.

More from GlobalPost: Thunderstorms may be fewer but more violent due to climate change