Mapping main risk areas of lightning fatalities between 2000 and 2020 over Odisha state (India): A diagnostic approach to reduce lightning fatalities using statistical and spatiotemporal analyses

Abstract

This study analyzes the spatiotemporal variation of lightning flashes and lightning strike deaths from 2001 to 2020 among all 30 districts of Odisha State, India. Lightning flash data for the study area were acquired from Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) installed aboard the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) for the 2001–2014 period and from International Space Station for the 2017–2020 period. Deaths by lightning flashes were acquired from the annual report of natural calamities for the 2001–2020 period from the Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Government of Odisha. In this study, the spatial pattern of lightning flashes based on LIS data and resultant deaths were assessed using spatiotemporal statistical analysis, including the interpolation method and Sen's slope estimator. The geospatial heat maps of lightning strikes and deaths highlight the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of lightning strikes and induced deaths in Odisha State. Furthermore, statistical analyses demonstrate an apparent increase in lightning strikes in the state as a whole, with particular attention to the Mayurbhanj, Sundargarh, and Keonjhar districts, which had the highest incidence of lightning. Odisha State was hit by more than 10,000 lightning strikes every year between 2000 and 2020, excluding 2001, 2017, and 2018. The results show a moderate correlation (R = 0.61) between lightning strikes and lightning deaths in Odisha State during the analyzed period, which further needs to be investigated with respect to the seasonality of lightning, the locational vulnerability, and temporal risk.