Lightning

In this second part on lightning safety, Sunday Star looks at the authorities’ role in enforcing and enhancing lightning protection measures to shield people from danger during thunderstorms. “WHEN thunder roars, go indoors.” That is one Americanism that we should adopt. Taking that basic guideline to heart, however, will come to nought if our homes are not […]

Malaysia has the third highest number of lightning strikes in the world, but awareness among Malaysians of the danger is still lacking. IT was hot and sunny when the Melaka United youth team started their training that fateful day on April 5. Before they knew it, however, it had started drizzling. Only when the downpour […]

PETALING JAYA: Extra precautions must be taken against lightning strikes with the Meteorological Department forecasting thunderstorms over the next few weeks. Lightning expert Prof Ir Dr Mohd Zainal Abidin Ab Kadir said lightning occurence was higher during the inter-monsoon period in April, May, September and October. He said many Malaysians were unaware of this statistic […]

SHAH ALAM: A teacher died after he was struck by lightning when he took shelter from the rain near a hall at SMK Seksyen 11, here yesterday. Mohd Farhan Masudi, 32, of SMK Dato Harun Tanjung Karang, had gone to the school to attend a Selangor level football coaching session when the incident took place […]

Many may not be aware that Malaysia ranks third in the world for lightning density.  The most recent case was in September when a 15-year-old boy from Kuala Terengganu died and three others were injured when lightning struck them while they were in a goat shed. Based on a scholarly report for Optical Transient Detector Lightning […]

Scientists and educators are confronting superstitions and poor infrastructure. Developing countries have long lists of problems—illiteracy, disease, hunger, corruption. There’s one more problem that has gotten less attention, until recently: lightning strikes, which cause a disproportionately high number of deaths in developing countries. Thanks to years of public education campaigns, most Americans know that “when […]

TOA Systems, Inc. announced that it has been selected by the Bureau of Land Management Alaska State Office to provide the lightning detection system for the BLM Alaska Fire Service (AFS). The Alaska Fire Service, located in Fort Wainwright, Alaska, provides wild-land fire suppression services for all Department of the Interior and Native Corporation Lands […]

PETALING JAYA: The Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah airport in Subang was partially closed for an hour after lightning damaged its runway during a thunderstorm. Department of Civil Aviation director-general Datuk Azharud­din Abdul Rahman said lightning yesterday created three holes in the middle of the runway, each one averaging two feet (60cm) in diameter and six […]

Bunyi guruh dan pancaran kilat sememangnya tidak asing bagi kita yang berada di negara beriklim tropika. Namun apa yang paling ditakuti ketika fenomena tersebut sedang ‘mengamuk’ adalah panahan petir yang mampu menghanguskan apa jua benda yang disambarnya. Di Amerika Syarikat (AS) , Pentadbiran Lautan dan Atmosfera Kebangsaan (NOAA) merekodkan 47 kematian manakala 246 orang lagi […]