Odisha Lightning Strikes: 12 Dead, Government Offers Compensation
The Odisha government announced on Sunday that the death toll from lightning strikes in the state the previous day had reached 12. They also declared compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the families of each victim. The lightning strikes resulted in four fatalities in Khurda district, two in Bolangir, and one each in Angul, Boudh, Gajapati, Jagatsinghpur, Dhenkanal, and Puri, according to the office of the special relief commissioner (SRC). Additionally, 14 people sustained injuries in lightning strikes across 11 districts in Odisha on Saturday, with eight of them in Bolangir district, three in Khurda, and one each in Angul, Cuttack, and Ganjam. Eight cattle were also killed by lightning, with six in Gajapati and two in Kandhamal. All 11 districts, as well as the cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, experienced heavy rainfall and lightning the day before.
Bhubaneswar and Cuttack saw 126 mm and 95.8 mm of rainfall, respectively, during a 90-minute downpour on Saturday afternoon. The state recorded a significant number of cloud-to-cloud (CC) and cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning strikes, with 36,597 CC and 25,753 CG strikes reported in the afternoon, according to the Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA). The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had predicted heavy rain with lightning in various parts of the state for the next four days. The monsoon was activated by a cyclonic circulation, resulting in widespread heavy rainfall. The meteorological department advised people to seek shelter in safe places during thunderstorms.
Another cyclonic circulation was reported over the northeast Bay of Bengal, and a new one was anticipated to form north of the Bay of Bengal around September 3, according to H R Biswas, director of the Regional Meteorological Centre. This would likely lead to the formation of a low-pressure area in the following 48 hours. Due to these weather patterns, the southwest monsoon, which had been subdued in Odisha, was expected to bring heavy rainfall over the next three to four days. The Odisha government has declared lightning a state-specific disaster, as lightning-related fatalities have been a significant concern in the region. In the 2021-22 year, a total of 281 people lost their lives due to lightning strikes in 30 districts, as reported by official sources.
