Struck by lightning

Residents of Karawanella, adjoining Ruwanwella are observing a self-imposed curfew these days. Come evening, if there is any threat of a thunderstorm, all work in the town comes to a standstill. No one will risk being outside in a storm. Those who live on the mountainside take shelter elsewhere in mortal fear of the lightning that streaks the sky. 

With five deaths and over ten people injured by lightning last month, the villagers of Karanawella have reason to be fearful. 

The first death was on April 1. Withanage W.K. Edirisinghe, (38), of Lewangama was inside his home, chatting to his wife who was in the garden when a Kithul tree in their backyard was struck by lightning. The tree caught fire and the ball of lightning from the tree came straight at him. 

Edirisinghe was wearing rubber slippers at the time and was not close to any electrical appliance. Yet he didn't have a chance. 

Nineteen-year-old Maduranga who was seated on the kitchen floor with Edirisinghe was also hit, but though seriously injured, he escaped death.

Since then, four others from the area, Wathawidanalage Jayantha Kumara (22), Rupilage Podimenike, Pradeep (19), and an estate worker from Halgolla have died. In most of these cases, the victims were indoors and not close to any metal or electricity conductors. 

The villagers are scared and confused. Though accustomed to thunderstorms, they say that such a phenomenon had never previously occurred in these villages. They believe the three antenna towers built on mountaintops surrounding the villages of Karanawella, Yatiyanthota and Lawangama could be the cause for the increase in lightning deaths. The three towers are situated on the Kambunumulla, Wewithala and Magal mountains and are equipped with lightning dispersion units that direct lightning towards the villages, they say. 

"We are afraid to go out of our homes when it rains. At the same time we are afraid to stay indoors. Never have we experienced such deadly lightning. Several villagers have moved away. It is after the telephone and television towers on the mountains were installed that the number of deaths increased," emphasised J. A Saraneris Appuhamy, husband of Podimenike, one of the victims. His neighbours agreed.

Dr. Nimal Abeysiriwardena, DMO of the Karanawella Base hospital has seen the heavy toll that lightning has taken on this area. Having heard the villagers' fears, he made inquiries about the television transmitting antenna tower from the TV station officials.

"They told me the tower has a lightning absorber or arrester fixed onto it so that the lightning gets earthed instead of being dispersed," Dr. Abeysiriwardena said. As for the other two towers, inquiries are yet to be made. 

But Dr. Abeysiriwardena too, agrees with the villagers that the number of lightning victims has been too high this year. "In the four years that I have served in this hospital, we have had about four victims during the April monsoons. But in this year alone we have over ten injured along with five deaths," he said. The wounded suffered severe burn injuries, fractures, wounds and from shock.

Karanawella is a mountainous area. The incidents have been reported from the adjoining villages of Lewangama and Yatiyanthota. Although the area is not particularly noted for Kithul trees, an abundance of the plant was observed. It is common knowledge that Kithul trees attract lightning due to their height. Several burnt Kithul trees stand in Withanage Edirisinghe's garden. Eye-witness reports of the incidents reveal that in 80 per cent of cases, lightning had been redirected from a Kithul tree onto the victim. 

An interesting observation was that most of the victims had been struck by lightning while in their kitchens. 

These however are not kitchens with modern electrical appliances, but humble rooms often made of clay and sometimes with tin roofing. According to residents, lightning enters the house from under the roofs and through the clay walls. Most of the kitchen walls we saw were damaged. Only at victim Jayantha Kumara's house was the fuse box burnt and broken and the earthing unit left in a bad state. 

Meteorological Department officials though they cannot specify Karanawella in particular, reveal that research conducted by the Department has shown that in the Sabaragamuwa province and specially in Ratnapura and surrounding towns lightning concentration is at its highest. According to their statistics, from 1995-1998 there have been 140 days when lightning has been recorded in Ratnapura alone. Other towns in the province have recorded lesser, more reasonable levels.

The increase in population, change in climatic conditions, and rise in thunderstorm activity in the atmosphere could also be contributing factors, they say. 

Dr. Abeysiriwardena is convinced that something must be done and fast. "We need assistance such as proper earthing units to be fixed in the high concentration areas and lightning arrester units to be installed, at least at Lewangama and Yatiyanthota," he said.

At the Karanawella hospital, Dr. Abeysiriwardena has begun the battle to save lives. Programmes to educate the people about lightning hazards are already in progress. At the OPD unit of the hospital, a video on how people can protect themselves against lightning is shown every day. Several lectures are also being held. 

Meanwhile in the Karawanella area, residents dread the monsoon, wondering when and where lightning will strike next.

Coping with autism

By Shelani de Silva

Autism is a pervasive, development disorder where a child lacks the ability to communicate with the outside world. The disorder can be mild, moderate or severe.

After nearly two years of intense training at a special school, Heshan is able to respond to a subject close to his heart; animals. Now he doesn't hesitate to show his enthusiasm by drawing pictures of animals. He is still in the process of getting into the mainstream but he is slowly learning to look people in the eye and respond to them.

In Heshan's case, his parents were strong enough to recognise and accept his difficulty and seek help. They were able to send him to a special school, the Open Education Institute at Nawala where he has received personalised help for nearly two years.

One of the biggest challenges a parent can face is having to accept that their child has some kind of behavioural difficulty. Being told that your child is autistic could be disastrous for a parent.

'As much as it is difficult to accept that your child is autistic, it is mainly because the parent has laid out several objectives for the child,' says clinical psychologist Dr. Gayathri Fernando.

Dr. Fernando who lives in USA is currently in Sri Lanka on a scholarship and lectures at the Colombo University.

With her wide interest in child psychology, she recently met a group of parents of children with learning difficulties at the Open Education Institute, who shared their experiences and were then advised by her on how to tackle such special kids.

"I am against the term 'normal' and 'abnormal' for kids with learning difficulties. Branding such kids as abnormal leaves them at a huge disadvantage. I would use the term 'on track development' and 'off track developmen'," she said. Every parent's objective is to give the child an independent life, but this changes with kids who have learning difficulties. The parent can have the same objectives but in a different way, says Dr. Fernando.

"Training the child in social skills in a safe environment, making them independent in personal hygiene, this is where our parents fail. In order to cut short a chore, such as feeding or cleaning, we tend to do it for the kid. Feeding a child can be done in five minutes whereas if the child was asked to eat by himself, it would take a few hours, not to mention the mess he would make," explained Dr. Fernando.

Community independence is also important for such children and vocational training is the best option where they are allowed to do what they like, she says.

'Parents may not like to allow the kids to do what they want, but it is very important they ask themselves the question why a certain type of training is essential. 

Autistic kids hate it when things are forced on them. Thus allowing them something they want to do will make it very easy for their future,' said Dr. Fernando.

The Open Education Institute at present has three autistic children and also conducts special classes for children with dyslexia and other learning difficulties.

Autistic children need a programme that covers 40-hours a week, for three years and one-to-one attention. It is vital that the school and home work together to provide for their needs.

'It is difficult to say whether there is an increase in autistic children, but there is definitely more awareness among parents and the public. We need more research, special trained teachers and psychologists. 

There is now a support group of parents. But more lobbying for awareness should be done. The Government can also request for volunteer services,' said Dr. Fernando.

How to identify autism

Causes for the disorder

What parents should know

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