USA lightning guidelines

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

I am going to jump into the discussion from a personal point of view.

My sister and I started playing golf at the same time when I was 9 and she was 5 in the Summer of 1961. I played competitively until the boys started coming in 1990 and my sister played on the women's golf team at the University of Miami (FL) in the mid-1970s. We have always taken lightening VERY seriously. And why have we taken it seriously? In 1965 at a local country club where one my future H.S. golf teammates belonged a foursome and their four caddies decided to continue playing in a thunderstorm. The result was two members and two caddies seriously injured and two members and two caddies DEAD!

The lightning detection systems that many golf clubs and athletic fields are great. I was officiating a H.S. soccer game at a school in Michigan one year when the AD stopped the game because the school's lightning detection system had detected lightning even though it was a clear day. Mark, Jr., and I have twice had games that we were umpiring when the game site's lightning detection system signal went off on a near cloudless day. We cleared the field and waited for the all clear signal. BUT actually seeing lightning or actually hearing thunder trumps a lightning detection system that does not detect lightning when it is confirmed visually.

Lightning can strike from as far away as 15 miles even when the storm has passed through. Rich has commented upon and NFHS recommendation with regard to cloud to cloud lightning. I do not officiate football like Rich and can only assume that this is something that will be discussed at baseball and softball meetings in the Spring for the benefit of we umpires. Hopefully, Rich can elaborate more on the recommendation. That said, cloud to cloud lightning send me off the baseball or softball diamonds.

MTD, Sr.