Strike from Above

Many areas in China are at an increased risk of lightning strikes till September, warns the China Meteorological Administration.

According to He Lifu, chief forecaster of the National Meteorological Center, much of China can expect more frequent lightning strikes between April and September, with a peak incidence between May and August.

Statistics show that lightning causes more than 1,000 casualties and losses in excess of 10 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion) in China every year. China has taken several steps to minimize the potential damage caused by lightning. In recent years, the China Meteorological Administration has been constantly improving its capabilities to monitor and forecast lightning, as well as spreading messages to increase public awareness of lightning risks. Since 2008, the number of casualties caused by lightning has been on the decline.

China has been developing and upgrading its lightning warning systems, according to Zhang Yijun, director of the Laboratory of Lightning Physics and Protection Engineering under the Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences. At the same time, lightning experiments have been conducted in a field testing base in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. In 2009, to measure and strengthen the responsiveness to lightning threats, lighting warning systems were tested in Beijing, Hunan, Sichuan, Shandong and other provinces.