Heartbroken survivor recalls the terrifying moment her friend was fatally struck by a freak lightning strike just ’30cm’ away from her: ‘How can one person be spared?’

A woman struck by lightning during a family barbecue has relived the harrowing moment that killed one of her closest friends.

Amanda Hancock, 43, was at Rosanna Hashem’s Cawdor home in south-west Sydney with their families on Saturday afternoon.

As rain clouds began to roll over the property, the two women were sitting centimetres apart in the front yard trying to upload a photo on Snapchat on a phone as their husbands move the barbecue undercover.

Moments later, the lightning strike caused a nearby tree to explode and a piece of wood shrapnel pierced Ms Hashem. The mother-of-four died at the scene on the eve of her 44th birthday. 

Ms Hancock was rushed to hospital with serious injuries after the phone exploded in her hand due to the power surge caused by the lightning.

Three days on, she’s still wondering as to how her friend died and she survived.

‘I was sitting right next to her, just 30 centimetres away. How can one person be spared?’ Ms Hancock told 7news.com.au.

‘It’s just not fair. Why her and not me?’

Amanda Hancock (left) and Rose Hashem (right) were together celebrating Ms Hashem’s 44th birthday when tragedy struck

Rosanna Hashem (pictured with her family) was killed on the eve of her 44th birthday

Ms Hancock doesn’t believe the shrapnel alone killed Ms Hashem. 

Their husbands were closer to the tree but escaped with only a few minor scratches. 

Ms Hancock believes she and her friend were struck by the lightning itself, which she described as ‘like an atomic bomb had gone off.’

‘I remember seeing a light. It was so bright… And the noise. It was deafening,’ she recalled. 

‘There was more than one (bolt) to it. It was like it branched out.’

She woke up on the ground her husband pleading her to stay awake as a fire raged in the backyard.

The families were initially supposed to celebrate Ms Hashem’s birthday at the Hancocks but relocated the party to her house, where there was more space for the kids.

The Saturday night storm initially only brought scattered rain and showers to the area. 

Rosanna Hashem was fatally struck when lightning hit her property in Cawdor around 5.30pm on Saturday

 The families were initially supposed to celebrate Ms Hashem’s birthday at the Hancocks but relocated the party to her home (pictured)

Ms Hancock said there hadn’t been any lighting or thunder in the area before the strike.

Neighbour Rob Campisi said the freak storm came out of nowhere and was unlike anything he had experienced in the ten years he had lived in the area.

‘It just started to rain, and then all of a sudden just the loudest bang we’ve ever heard,’ Mr Campisi told the Daily Telegraph.

‘The power went out and (I was) in the shed and … I looked outside and saw a big cloud of smoke.’

Mr Campisi said the weather conditions had not seemed dangerous enough to require staying inside.

‘Sometimes you just don’t know when it’s your time,’ he said.

Ms Hashem has been remembered as ‘a beautiful mother of four boys (and a) loving wife’.

She also owned The Groomery Cat Grooming Services, a business she operated from her Cawdor home.

Neighbour Rob Campisi said the weather didn’t seem severe enough to warrant staying inside

The business remains closed until further notice. 

Rosanna was a devoted wife, a loving mother to four beautiful boys, and a passionate business owner. She was the heart of her family, a pillar of strength, and a kind soul who touched the lives of so many in her community,’ friend Jemma Powell said on GoFundMe.

‘Her sudden passing has left her husband and children facing an unimaginable loss, not only emotionally but also financially as they navigate life without her.

Rosanna gave so much to those around her—now it’s our turn to give back and honour her memory.’

The fundraiser has raised almost $18,000 within three days.

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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk