Astonishingly, the eastern Indian state of Odisha was hit by 61,000 lightning strokes in approximately two hours, media reports said, quoting the data from the state authority. The lightning strikes particularly hit Bhubaneshwar on September 2, 2023, and the surrounding areas bore the brunt of relentless lightning strikes that continued unabated throughout the afternoon thunderstorms.
Statistics from OSDMA
The Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA), using the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), revealed that by 5:30 PM, there were 36,597 cloud-to-cloud lightning occurrences, while a daunting 25,753 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes were recorded.
“Total lightning strikes across Odisha on September 2, 2023, till 5:30 PM are 1.CC:36,597 and 2.CC: 25,753,” OSDMA wrote on Twitter.
MD Gyana Ranjan Das of the Indian Institute of Tropical Management said that the figures had been released as the state of Odisha is covered by the Earth Networks System.
Loss of Lives
Lightning struck in six districts of Odisha on September 2, 2023, resulting in the tragic loss of ten lives and injuries caused to three individuals, according to the Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) responsible for disaster management in the state. The casualties were as follows: one person in Angul District, two in Bolangir, one in Boudh, one in Dhenkanal and four in Khorda.
Additionally, the SRC reported that the three injured individuals were from the Khorda District. In a post shared on September 2, 2023, SRC of Odisha said: “Today (02.09.2023), ten persons died and three persons injured in six districts due to lightning, Angul-1, Bolangir-02, Boudh-01, Jagatsinghpur-01, Dhenkanal-01 and Khorda-04 and 03 injured).”
Widespread rainfall can occur in the next 48 hours. Thunderstorms and lightning are also expected to take place in parts of Northern Odisha. Five districts are warned of heavy and heavy rainfall. Dhenkanal, Angul, Kalahandi, Boudh and Kandhamal. People have been advised and warned to take safe shelter during lightning and thunderstorms. People should stay away from trees and water bodies.
Cause behind Lightning Strikes
On September 3 and September 4, 2023, around 62,350 lightning strikes hit Odisha and killed twelve people in three hours of the unprecedented rampage. Scientists have attributed the incident to various factors leading to climate change and other related weather phenomena.
“Weather scientists said that these unusual and extreme lightning activities occur when the monsoon returns to normalcy after a long break. According to them, a collision of cold and warm air masses is the perfect condition for such unpredictable lightning events.
A reputed media agency report said that 3,790 people have been killed by lightning strikes across the states in the last eleven years. “When moisture increases in the upper part of the atmosphere, the number of lightning strikes increases, Umashankar Das, a scientist with the Bhubaneshwar Meteorological Office, told the daily,” he said.
According to a magazine, the thunderstorms accompanying lightning strikes take place in the atmosphere due to three reasons- sufficient availability of moisture, unstable air and atmospheric mechanism to lift the air.
“Lightning has become a common occurrence because of intense heat and moisture of content in the air, caused by advancing air coming from the Bay of Bengal. The intense heat waves, coupled with other climatic changes, have intensified the lightning strikes in Odisha. A sudden flow of moisture from Bengal has led to a recent increase in lightning strikes in Odisha,” the former director of the Bhubaneshwar Centre of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), SC Sahu, reportedly said.
It is worth noting that earlier in May 2023, three individuals, including a woman, tragically lost their lives when lightning struck various locations within the Saranakula Police limits in Nayagarh district.
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