lightning

[Tim C]

"My guess is high."

I call your bluff.

In my area of Oregon (a "hot bed" of thunder shower activity in March and April) there are ZERO systems.

Maybe in your "area" (Texas) has this covered. Sadly, we leave it to the umpire.

(And I hope Canada never EVER umpires in the spring in this area.)

Regards,

[canadaump6]

The lightning was followed by a small rumble of thunder about 10 seconds later. It was not 200 feet from players- when I said centre field I meant in that direction, but certainly not close to the diamond.

Alright Steve I can accept the fact that umpiring isn't for me if I put myself at risk for lawsuits. But it's not really the lawsuits that concern me, it's the safety of the players. Anytime we get lightning everyone just goes into the dugout or bench area thinking that shelter from rain also provides shelter from lightning, so they wouldn't have been any safer had I called the game. Better to play out the last 1 or 2 outs than have everyone standing in the dugouts hoping that the game gets resumed.

As a side note, I had a game today as a player in which a flash of lightning went off more than an hour before the game. We had another flash in the 7th or 8th inning, but nobody said anything and the game was completed.

[BigUmp56]

Do your dugouts have dirt floors and no roof?

Tim.

[canadaump6]

Originally Posted by BigUmp56

Do your dugouts have dirt floors and no roof?

Tim.

They have dirt floors and a tin roof. They're made of chain link fencing, so they're more like "bench areas".

[MrUmpire]

Originally Posted by canadaump6

The lightning was followed by a small rumble of thunder about 10 seconds later. It was not 200 feet from players- when I said centre field I meant in that direction, but certainly not close to the diamond.

Initially, you said, "A couple streaks of lightning went off in centre field"...not near centre field, not in the general direction of centre field, not beyond centre field, but IN centre field.

Okay, so now you change your story. Ten seconds equates to approximately two miles, so the lightning was still well within the danger zone. It would still be idiotic to expose players to that level of danger.

Anytime we get lightning everyone just goes into the dugout or bench area thinking that shelter from rain also provides shelter from lightning, so they wouldn't have been any safer had I called the game. Better to play out the last 1 or 2 outs than have everyone standing in the dugouts hoping that the game gets resumed.

Open structures like pavillions and dugouts are, accoring to NOAA, among the worst areas to seek shelter from lightning.

As a side note, I had a game today as a player in which a flash of lightning went off more than an hour before the game. We had another flash in the 7th or 8th inning, but nobody said anything and the game was completed.

Incomprehensible.

[canadaump6]

Originally Posted by MrUmpire

Initially, you said, "A couple streaks of lightning went off in centre field"...not near centre field, not in the general direction of centre field, not beyond centre field, but IN centre field.

Okay, so now you change your story. Ten seconds equates to approximately two miles, so the lightning was still well within the danger zone. It would still be idiotic to expose players to that level of danger.



Open structures like pavillions and dugouts are, accoring to NOAA, among the worst areas to seek shelter from lightning.



Incomprehensible.

Nope, I never changed my story. You just misinterpreted it. In my post I mentioned that dugouts do not offer protection from lightning, so you're not telling us anything new there.

[bob jenkins]

Originally Posted by canadaump6

The lightning was followed by a small rumble of thunder about 10 seconds later.

So it was about two miles away. If that happens in my game, we're suspending -- right now. I don't care where the players go -- even to those lightnign attractors you call dugouts. *I'M* going to my car.

I will agree that if the flash-to-bang time is close to the 30 seconds recommended, that was the first we've seen / heard, and we're nearly at the last out, I might let the game continue for a while.

[SAump]

Did you know that 75% of the people struck by lightning are struck with a blue-sky overhead?

The Flash-to-Bang method, whenever used correctly, may save some of the lightning strike victims. LDS provide a bit of "bang for the buck" for those victims standing beneath those blue skies. Cheap personal lightning detection systems range from $40 {10-miles}, $200 {30-miles}, up to $900 {60-miles}. A simple Radio Shack portable weather radio costs $20.

I see how the need for athletic uniforms, equipment, field and facility maintenance or repair, and utilities outweigh the need for LDS. These are more pressing concerns for small groups on a budget w/out adding communication and safety equipment . Expensive LDS were installed at country clubs {golf, swimming and tennis} a long time ago. I would expect newer facilities to have access to portable units, or access to hand-held radios in touch w/ local weather service providers.