2 of family killed in lightning strike in Odisha’s Bargarh

A devastating lightning strike in Lakhamara under Padmapur civic limits in Bargarh district resulted in the loss of two family members on Wednesday.

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The victims have been identified as Ashish Meher and his aunt (wife of father’s younger brother), Mamata Meher. During a thundershower earlier in the day, the duo had taken shelter in a deserted thatched house near a farmland. In an unfortunate turn of events, lightning struck, causing severe burns to Mamata. She died on the spot.

Ashish was rescued by some locals and was transported to a healthcare facility in critical condition, but was declared ‘dead’ upon arrival by doctors of the hospital.

No comments were received from the deceased’s family or local police in this regard.

A pall of gloom descended on the locality after news of the deaths spread.

Worth mentioning, with the trough in westerlies now running roughly between 7.6 and 9.4 Km above mean sea level, hailstorm, thunderstorm with lightning and gusty surface wind speed reaching 50-60 kmph are very likely to occur in several Odisha districts during April 30 and May 1, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) regional centre forecasted.

Climate change considerations

While not explicitly quantified in official reports, the sustained high casualty figures despite mitigation measures suggest possible links to changing weather patterns. The Forest Department's multi-year palm plantation strategy reflects adaptive planning for increased atmospheric instability.

District-level impact of lightning

Mayurbhanj district suffered the highest casualties (134 deaths), followed by Balasore (110), Ganjam (104), and Keonjhar (100). Deogarh recorded the lowest toll (11 deaths). The spatial distribution correlates with meteorological patterns and population density in these regions.

Five-year lightning death toll

Odisha recorded 1,418 lightning-related deaths between 2020 and 2025, with annual figures showing a decreasing trend: 339 (2020-21), 296 (2021-22), 306 (2022-23), 272 (2023-24), and 205 (2024-25). This places Odisha among India's most lightning-affected states, with over six lakh annual strikes reported.

Mitigation strategies in Odisha

In 2023-24, Odisha implemented a Rs 7.59 crore initiative planting 19 lakh palm trees across 51 forest divisions, utilising their natural lightning-conduction properties. The program follows the 2015 declaration of lightning as a state-specific disaster, enabling Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia payments to victims' families.

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Recent incidents (March-April 2025)

March 2025 saw two lightning deaths in Ganjam and Puri during intense thunderstorms. Early April 2024 recorded four additional fatalities in Odisha as part of a regional surge that claimed 126 lives across East-Central India.

Reported By: Somesh