Story: Fauziatu Adam & Jack Morphet
GHANA is more prone to thunder strikes than other West African countries, according to a Spanish lightning protection company, Aplicaciones Technologicas (AT).
The country is reported to have 10 lightning strikes per square kilometre in a year due to its closeness to the Equator, thereby placing it in the danger zone of thunderstorms.
At the launch of a new lightning protection product in Accra yesterday, the Marketing and Distribution Development Manager of AT, Mr Pablo Gracia, said the new technology could protect larger areas and predict lightning strikes better than traditional methods.
“This new technology monitors the electricity in the air to prevent death and equipment damage, as well as provide protection for large areas around a structure, not just the structure itself,” he added.
He said in other parts of the world where the technology was already in operation, it protected airports, places of worship, financial institutions, military compounds, high-rise buildings, football fields and houses.
The Chairman of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) Council, Alhaji Ahmadu Sorogho, said the first issue that must be addressed was obtaining certification from the Ghana Standards Board and the GNFS.
“We will do our best to give AT all the legal backing we can, provided that it meets certification standards, because I know for sure that this technology will benefit our country,” he said.
“It is easier to destroy buildings than to build them, so if we can protect destruction, that is a good thing, especially as we are challenged by an energy crisis where there are power surges affecting and damaging people’s equipment,” he added.
The company, which was established in 1986, offers increased external protection using lightning rods and earthing lines to protect structures and people from direct lightning strikes.
It also offers internal protection against lightning electromagnetic impulses for electronic equipment, welding and preventative protection that detect lightning and alerts people conducting dangerous activities such as fuelling aeroplanes or playing golf.
GHANA is more prone to thunder strikes than other West African countries, according to a Spanish lightning protection company, Aplicaciones Technologicas (AT).
The country is reported to have 10 lightning strikes per square kilometre in a year due to its closeness to the Equator, thereby placing it in the danger zone of thunderstorms.
At the launch of a new lightning protection product in Accra yesterday, the Marketing and Distribution Development Manager of AT, Mr Pablo Gracia, said the new technology could protect larger areas and predict lightning strikes better than traditional methods.
“This new technology monitors the electricity in the air to prevent death and equipment damage, as well as provide protection for large areas around a structure, not just the structure itself,” he added.
He said in other parts of the world where the technology was already in operation, it protected airports, places of worship, financial institutions, military compounds, high-rise buildings, football fields and houses.
The Chairman of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) Council, Alhaji Ahmadu Sorogho, said the first issue that must be addressed was obtaining certification from the Ghana Standards Board and the GNFS.
“We will do our best to give AT all the legal backing we can, provided that it meets certification standards, because I know for sure that this technology will benefit our country,” he said.
“It is easier to destroy buildings than to build them, so if we can protect destruction, that is a good thing, especially as we are challenged by an energy crisis where there are power surges affecting and damaging people’s equipment,” he added.
The company, which was established in 1986, offers increased external protection using lightning rods and earthing lines to protect structures and people from direct lightning strikes.
It also offers internal protection against lightning electromagnetic impulses for electronic equipment, welding and preventative protection that detect lightning and alerts people conducting dangerous activities such as fuelling aeroplanes or playing golf.
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