41,025 thunderbolts on a single day in Andhra Pradesh, 13 dead
Though officials of the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) issued alerts about the lightning strikes, they did not reach the ground level.
Published: 03rd May 2018 06:15 AM | Last Updated: 03rd May 2018 06:15 AM | A+A A-
Banana plantation damaged in heavy rain and wind at Venkatayapalem village in Guntur district on Wednesday | P Ravindra Babu
VIJAYAWADA: The state witnessed 41,025 cloud-to-ground strikes (thunderbolts) on a single day on Tuesday, causing as many as 13 human deaths. Another person died due to a tree collapse.Severe lightning activities were observed at around 7:15 am over Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts and, in the afternoon, West Godavari, East Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam, Nellore, Chittoor and Kadapa districts were rattled by crashing thunderbolts.The lightning activity in 11 districts in the state subsided by around 11:40 pm.
While 6 persons lost their lives in Guntur district alone, three persons were struck dead by lightning in Vizianagaram, two in West Godavari and one each in Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and East Godavari districts.Though officials of the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) issued alerts about the lightning strikes, they did not reach the ground level. As per the details given by the APSDMA, they alerted 443 mandals in 11 districts.
Of the 41,025 lightnings that struck the state, as many as 11,955 were reported in Nellore district followed by 4,725 in Prakasam, 4,703 in Srikakulam, 4,101 in Guntur, 3,901 in Vizianagaram, 3,216 in East Godavari, 2,925 in Krishna and 2,698 in Visakhapatnam. Kadapa district witnessed 327 lightnings.
