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International Lightning Safety Day was created in 2015 to mark the anniversary of the June 28, 2011, lightning strike that killed 19 people.
On June 28, 2011, a lightning strike at Runyanya Primary School in western Uganda killed 18 students and their teacher, sparking concern among officials due to a recent spate of deadly lightning strikes in the country.
The incident occurred around 1630 local time while students waited inside classrooms for a downpour to cease. The police reported that the victims included 15 girls and three boys, with another 36 students admitted to the hospital for injuries. The absence of lightning rods atop several buildings, including schools and health centers, is the believed cause of the high casualty rate. Uganda's Minister of State for Disaster Preparedness, Musa Ecweru, labeled the omission of lightning arrestors during construction as "negligent."
He pledged to rectify the issue moving forward. Marx Kabi, a specialist at Uganda's National Forestry Authority (UNFA), highlighted another major cause of increased lightning strikes: deforestation. He noted that with fewer trees to absorb or channel lightning, most areas now covered by shrubs were more vulnerable to strikes. The incident brought the total lightning-related fatalities that week to 28.
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