Saturday | 11 January 2025 | Reg No- 06
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Saturday | 11 January 2025 | Epaper

Lightning:  A visible threat to Bangladesh

Published : Wednesday, 17 May, 2017 at 12:00 AM  Count : 1368
Rana Dutta
Man has always been the whimsical puppet and merely a silent audience to various manifestations of nature's fury throughout the time. Thunderstorms are dreadful natural disaster which always associates with the inevitable risk with lightning and woeful death consequence. According to the experts' opinion, deforestation, agricultural and labour-intensive economy, poor infrastructure and climate variability are playing a pregnant role in high rates of lightning-related deaths and injuries in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has seen a near-record number of lightning deaths in 2016. Experts emphasis that absence of 'now casting system' for urgent notices is one of the reasons of so many lightning stricken deaths in Bangladesh. According to the Department of Disaster Management, until September 20, a total of 193 people were killed in lightning strikes, surpassing all previous annual figures that ranged from 51 to 136 between 2010 and 2015.
Climatologists warn us that climate change is causing more water evaporation from the land and ocean, increasing clouds and rainfall and the potential for lightning storms. They also predict that as the world warms up, we should expect more explosive lightning events rather than a gradual increase. By perceiving its importance, Bangladesh government has added since August last year lightning strikes to the country's list of official types of disasters.
Increasing number of fatal lightning strikes is related to the country's population growth and disappearance of many tall trees. Moreover, frequent use of metal farm equipment in open fields, using cell phone during the thunderstorms, standing near metal cell phone towers or electrical power towers, taking shelter under trees during electrical storms and so on are also liable to increase lightning related deaths in Bangladesh.
According to Bangladesh's Met Office, prior to 1981, the country saw lightning strikes on average nine days each May. Since that time, the country has seen strikes an average of 12 days each May. Altogether, 1,476 people have died from lightning in Bangladesh since 2010 as per the data report of Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
A study carried by the University of Berkeley in 2014, lightning strikes is expected to increase by 12 per cent for every degree Celsius of warming, with a 50 per cent rise in lightning expected by the end of the century. Therefore, radical climate change is one of the vital elements of occurring frequent lightning deaths all over the world.
Lightning is one of the leading causes of weather-related fatalities. Lightning most often strikes people who work outside or engage in outdoor activities. According to the researchers, farming and field labour, construction and building maintenance activities, heavy equipment operational works, pipefitting or plumbing, telecommunications field repairing works and power utility field repairing activities are the highest risky occupations in Bangladesh during the lightning strikes.  
Ron Holle, an eminent Meteorologist opines that many structures in developing countries both factories and homes are not safe at all. Open-air designs, thatched and flimsy metal roofs are more vulnerable. And open-air taxis and carts do not provide the protection from lightning that is typically afforded by solid vehicles. As per the Government of Bangladesh statistics, since 2011 an annual average of about 200 people died in lightning strikes.
There is no concrete report on lightning deaths in India because incidents often aren't reported. But, scientists estimate the number is more than 3,000 per year. In Nepal, more than 130 were reported killed by lightning in 2012, and the average for South Africa is about 260 deaths per year. Even in the US tracking of lightning incidents is tricky and so, there is no universal database to be considered.
Still, the numbers tend to be lower in the US than in developing countries. In 2013 so far, 23 people have died in the US from lightning strikes, according to reports collected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In Malaysia, losses are around USD 100 million per year, according to Chandima Gomes, head of the Center for Electromagnetic and Lightning Protection Research at the University of Putra Malaysia.
Although experiments have been conducted since the time of Benjamin Franklin, a degree of mystery yet remains regarding lightning. The temperature inside a lightning bolt can reach 50,000 degrees F, hotter than the surface of the sun. The typical thunderstorm is 15 miles in diameter and lasts an average of 30 minutes. Nearly 1,800 thunderstorms are happening at any moment around the world. That's 16 million a year!
As per National Fire Protection Association, 70 per cent deaths happen in direct strike; side flash happens when standing near a tree. Physical contact with struck object has similar consequences to direct strike. Lightning impulse travelling through ground and may pass through one limb and out another. Injuries include burns and paralysis but these are usually temporary. Moreover, a number of deaths have resulted from telephone usage while lightning.
Now, it is time to take the challenge. Definitely, the government of Bangladesh can play a strategic role not only by planting palm trees across the whole country but also by increasing priority based budget on the disaster management including lightning strikes and have to provide thunderstorm forecasting and lightning information in time to the concerned community through the Department of Meteorology and the relevant private sectors by using lightning detection system.
Satellite TV channels must have to telecast some documentary short film regarding the lightning strikes, and its bad effects both on human life and property and what to do or not during and after the lightning strikes.
With the depth touch of the meteorologists' and the researchers' opinion and prediction, Bangladesh is in the risk of lightning disaster. Researchers believe that the decreasing number of trees and climate variability are leading to an increase in the frequency of lightning strikes. Therefore, it is high time to take some epoch-making modern initiatives to reduce lightning deaths here in Bangladesh.
Rana Dutta is Assistant Deputy Secretary, BKMEA






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