Tell Hun Xen to stop cursing Cambodians with lightning strike!

Lightning kills 165 Cambodians in 2011, up 45 pct

January 07, 2012

PHNOM PENH (Xinhua) -- Death toll from lightning strikes in Cambodia had increased by 45 percent to 165 deaths in 2011 from 114 deaths in a year earlier, Keo Vy, chief of the Cabinet of National Committee for Disaster Management, said Saturday.

"Among the 2011's deaths, 23 were children," he told Xinhua by telephone, adding that besides the deaths, other 139 people were injured.

"Most of the victims are in rural areas," he added.

Three provinces with the highest death toll from lightning last year are Battambang, some 300 kilometers Northwest of Phnom Penh, Pursat, some 175 kilometers West of Cambodia and Kampong Cham, about 120 kilometers East of the country.

Lightning occurs every year in Cambodia, especially, in rainy season which begins from May through October.

Cambodia sees spike in lightning deaths

Thursday, May 19, 2011
AFP

PHNOM PENH — Lightning strikes have killed 56 Cambodians so far this year, twice as many as over the same period last year, an official said Thursday, blaming an early start to the rainy season.

Just 27 people were struck dead by lightning in the first five months of 2010, when 114 were killed over the whole year, according to the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM).

Unusually early rain fall this year had contributed to the rise in fatalities, NCDM spokesman Keo Vy told AFP.

"This may be related to the rain that started in early February this year, compared to April last year," he said. Cambodia's rainy season normally runs from May to October.

Lightning claims 94th victim of 2010 in Cambodia

August 20, 2010
Xinhua

Lightning killed a woman in Banteay Meanchey province's Malai district Monday, bring the total number of lightning deaths in Cambodia for the year so far to 94, local media reported on Friday, citing the figure from the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM).

Koy Vy, 37, was struck by lightning at about 6 pm while carrying rainwater to a house located in a cornfield in O'Sampoar commune, the Cambodia Daily quoted deputy district chief Duong Tum as saying.

"Right now the lightning is very powerful and dangerous," he said. "We told the villagers not to go out when it rains, but it' s hard for them to get out of the rain because they are farmers."

The NCDM's count of lightning deaths at this point last year was 120. While there have been fewer deaths this year due to lightning strikes, six deaths were recorded across the country this week.

"This week a lot of people were killed by lightning ... mostly due to all the rain," Keo Vy, deputy director of information and relations for the NCDM, was quoted as saying.

Vy said the NCDM was preparing a document for villagers on how to stay safe during thunderstorms, adding that it would be more detailed than previous versions.

"We are preparing the presentation and we also are seeking a sponsor to print posters and booklets," he said.

"When the villagers understand, it will help reduce the deaths by lightning," he said.

Cambodia's death toll by lightning increases to 13

April 26, 2010
Xinhua

At least 13 Cambodians have so far died by lightning since the first early rain that dropped last month, a government official said Monday.

Keo Vy, communication officer of National Committee of Disaster Management said, to date, including the latest victims by lightning that occurred last Friday in Kompong Cham province, the death toll is 13.

Early last week, six people have died by lightning in Pursat province alone.

Pursat province, located about 200 kilometers northwest of Phnom Penh, while Kompong Cham is located in northeast of Phnom Penh.

Last weekend, Prime Minister Hun Sen called on Cambodian people across the nation to be cautious about lightning, saying the lightning seems fiercer in recent years.

Lightning which occurs every year in Cambodia, normally starts in rainy season which begins from May through October.

Last year, 108 Cambodians died by lightning, an increase of 23 deaths if compared to 2008 that recorded only 85.

Cambodia’s Lightning Deaths Up 50% This Year Over 2008

PHNOM PENH, Dec 30 (NNN-Xinhua) — Lightning has killed 140 people this year in Cambodia, a more than 50 percent increase over the number of people killed by lightning in 2008, local media reported on Wednesday, citing the figures from the National Commiltee for Disaster Management (NCDM).

According to Keo Vy, deputy director of the department of information for the NCDM, lightning killed 140 and injured 59. In 2008, 95 were killed and 22 iujured.

“This year the number of lighting deaths increased to 140 …. In some cases, two or three people died at once,” the Cambodia Daily quoted Keo Vy as saying.

The year-end figures were finalized this month, following the end of the rainy season in November and the last death in September.

Although there is no official stance on the reason for the increased death toll, some have speculated that climate change may be to blame, the daily reported.

Another possibility floated earlier this year by meteorology experts was the spread of electronic technologies in rural Cambodia.

Tin Ponlok, national project coordinator for the Ministry of Environment’s climate change office, said Tuesday he had heard speculation that the increase in lightning deaths and injuries could be tied to climate change but no studies have been done to support the theory.

A lightning safety education pamphlet that had been distributed in years past by the government was cut this year due to a lack of funds, Keo Vy noted.

“We educated the people on how to protect themselves from lighting, such as not turning on radios or talking on phones when it rains. NCDM wanted to make the booklet to distribute to the people but we didn’t have the funds,” he said.

138 People Killed by Lightning

10/15/2009
ShortNews.com

According to the National Committee for Disaster Management in Cambodia, 138 people have been killed by lightning during the first eight months of this year. 95 people were killed by lightning last year.

Committee spokesman Keo Vy said that during the electrical storms, most of the victims were standing in open fields and taking shelter under trees. The other victims were using electrical appliances during the lightning storms.

Keo said, “Although we cannot stop lightning, we can help reduce the dangers caused by it.” A lightning bolt can contain 100 million volts and can raise the temperature surrounding it to 27,000 °C.

Lightning strikes kill 113 in Cambodia in 2009

Aug 19, 2009
DPA

Phnom Penh - Lightning has killed 113 people so far this year in Cambodia, making 2009 the worst in recent years for deaths attributable to the natural phenomenon, national media reported.

Four more people have been struck and killed by lightning since Saturday, the Cambodia Daily newspaper reported, including a 16-year-old youth walking two cows across a rice field on Tuesday.

The government's National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) said 93 people died last year from lightning strikes, more than double the 45 who were killed in 2007.

The deputy head of the NCDM, Nhim Vanda, said it was unclear why numbers are rising year on year, but said climate change could in part be to blame.

'This year lightning has killed more than 100 people, but it is more usual for lightning to kill around 40 people per year,' Nhim Vanda told the newspaper.

He said the government is making efforts to educate Cambodians about the dangers of lightning, and how to protect themselves in the event of a storm.

'Everyone should turn off TVs, radios and telephones, and refrain from touching metal objects during rainstorms,' he said.

The government will hold a series of workshops next year to educate people about the dangers of lightning.

Natural disasters test Cambodia's crisis management

Wednesday, June 17, 2009
ABC Radio Australia

Cambodia has suffered a string of natural disasters this year, a conference on crisis management has been told in Phnom Penh.

Officials from the Association of South-East Asian Nations have been meeting in Cambodia's capital to discuss disaster management in Asia.

More than 30 delegates at the three-day conference are discussing ways of helping each other during disasters.

The conference heard from Cambodia's National Committee of Disaster Management that 49 storms hit the country in the first five months of this year, killing two people and injuring 45 others.

Lighting strikes killed 79 people and injured two others.

Homes destroyed

The wild weather destroyed almost 600 houses and damaged more than 700 others.

There were also 50 fires reported in the first five months of this year, causing nine deaths and five injuries.

The fires destroyed 650 houses, 230 shops and 65 tonnes of unmilled rice.

Cambodia's disaster management committee says disaster hazards have increased sharply compared with the same period of last year.