There have been reports of high incidence of lightening in many parts of the State. CESS has taken up a project to assess the incidence of lightening at one such place, viz, Kadakkal in Chadayamangalam block panchayat, Kollam, Kerala to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of lighting with the objective to:

Assess the spatial and temporal distribution of lightening incidence in Chadayamangalam block panchayat area from the records of past events.

Study the reasons for such high incidence

Prepare a lightening zonation map

Develop a system to monitor the cloud electric field at ground

Using the electric field data assess, the feasibility of issuing a short term  warning about possibility of lightening occurrence.

One of the reasons for the higher lightning incidence was higher cloud activity.

The area, Kadakkal, seems to have relatively higher incidence of lightning.

The electric field equipment has been found to work satisfactorily.

Field trial of the equipment is to be done in the next lightening season.

Lightening incidence is not concentrated to certain regions as reported.

The incidence depends on the spatial and temporal distribution of CB cloud. The distribution itself varies.

Understanding lightning accidents to alleviate the hazard

The main objectives of the project include:

To collect data on the past lightning incidents /accidents for the State and create a comprehensive data bank

To make a lightning activity map for the State using this data

To classify the data based on the occurrence on different geographic terrains and to identify areas of higher incidence of lightning in terms of its frequency and intensity of damage it creates

To take up detailed studies in areas where there is a high lightning activity

To note the type of soil / surface characteristics and vegetation at the sites of lightning accidents

To install Electric Field Meter at one of the sites where lightning incidence is high or damage is high and study the electric field characteristics of cloud involved in lightning with the help of the Panchayat functionaries / resident associations concerned

To conduct awareness camps in areas of high lightning frequency so that loss of life and property there can be kept low

In order to prepare a data bank, data regarding the lightning incidents/accidents will be collected from the revenue records with the Village Offices, past newspaper reports and from other acknowledged sources. Data thus collected will be scrutinized to eliminate duplication in the data bank.