Radio Swaziland said the congregants were attending a service of the Zionist Church at Mankayane, about 70 kilometres (43 miles) southwest of the capital when the accident happened.

"Lightning directly hit the church, killing the 58-year-old priest, five children, two men and a woman," the report said.

"Three of the nine came from a single family -- a mother with her two children so you can imagine the trauma that the family was facing," said Swaziland Red Cross spokesman Leonard Dlamini.

He said the nine would be given a mass funeral on Sunday at Mbeka in Mankayane. Six survivors were rushed to the nearby Mankayane Government Hospital where they treated for shock and later released.

TERRA.WIRE