Lightning strikes have killed more than 79 people in Jajpur district in the last four and half years. An average of eighteen people die due to lightning strike fatalities every year in this costal district, official sources said.
While as many as 16 persons were killed in lightning strikes in the district in 2015, 08 persons died in the same calamity in 2016. Similarly, 26 people were killed in 2017 and 18 people in 2018 were killed in lightning strike fatalities in the district, district emergency office sources said.
However, as many as 11 people have been killed by the lightning strikes so far (by 20 June) in the district.
The highest, 26 people were killed in the year of 2017 while the lowest, 8 died due to lightning strike fatalities in 2016 in the district, the official data said. Majority of the casualties were reported from the Sukinda, Danagadi, Korei, Bari, Binjharpur and Dharmasala blocks areas in the district, the sources said.
Although the advance information regarding lightning and thunder storm are being provided to the people by the metrological department due to advantage of science and technology, still awareness among the people is the need of the hour, said social activists.
“Farm workers or daily wage earners especially those who work in the open are most of the victims of lightning. There is an urgent need to make these people aware of how to deal with natural calamities like lightning and remain safe,” said Prasant Kumar Sahu, who works for disaster management and filed the reports for the last three decades.