Why does Indonesia have the highest death toll from lightning strikes (5 photos)

In Indonesia, lightning strike deaths happen more often than in many other countries, according to statistics. In total, about 2 thousand people die from lightning strikes every year in the world (on average). Moreover, in the USA it is 0.3 people per million population, in India - 2 people per million, in Indonesia - 2.4. According to statistics, only Africa has more, but it is quite difficult to keep statistics there.





And this is with statistics that 9 out of 10 people struck by lightning survive! Of course, it's not about them, let's approach it scientifically. The fact is that mortality rates are closely linked to economic division. In poor countries in Asia, with poor infrastructure and low levels of education, lightning strike deaths are much more common than anywhere else in the world. It makes sense. And Indonesia regularly experiences some of the most intense thunderstorms in the world. This is due to the geography of Sumatra and Java. Warm, moist air blows from the Indian Ocean, where it hits the volcanic mountains of Sumatra and Java, causing the most severe thunderstorms.



And at sea, lightning likes to strike ships

Bogor, West Java, a satellite city on the outskirts of Jakarta, is considered one of the most lightning-prone places, with hundreds of strikes recorded each year. And on some islands, thunderstorms and lightning strikes occur up to 218 days a year! Experts say one of the reasons is poor infrastructure. The number of lightning deaths in the United States has dropped sharply in the 40 years since the 1960s, as housing has improved, work practices have changed, and lightning rods have become more common.





Road worker struck by lightning in Indonesia right in the umbrella

On the contrary, in Indonesia illegal (and legal) logging has accelerated, sometimes there are too many empty spaces. Moreover, people are often left alone in the field with a thunderstorm. Because in Indonesia, the agricultural sector accounts for as much as 41 percent of the workforce. Most of the work consists of manual labor alone in the field. The country simply does not have large industrial farms, which are common now.



A huge percentage of the workforce is in the fields, just by the theory of probability, someone will get hit

Industrialization is not just productive heavy machines replacing physical labor. People inside tractors are much better protected from lightning strikes than when there are only buffalo and a plow nearby. And the third reason, besides the fact that farming is constantly being in open fields under endless thunderstorms.



City dwellers almost never die from lightning

The thing is that people do not know about the real dangers of thunderstorms. For example, rural residents of Indonesia believe that during a thunderstorm you cannot make noise and talk loudly, because lightning CAN HEAR and strike you. People simply do not know how physics and nature work. Often they pray before going to the field before a thunderstorm, so that the gods will ward off lightning from them. And they consider this sufficient protection. Do not make noise when May thunderstorms are approaching.