You missed his point entirely.

FWIW, the 30-minute guideline is the authoritative recommendation of the National Weather Service. The presumption is that there are no other capabilities available to determine when it is safe, which is probably the case for 90+% of our games. I know I don't have access to lightning detectors, NOAA radios, etc., in games I do, nor are any of my friends professional air traffic controllers.

Why wait the full 30 minutes if you do have access to vetted evidence that the storm is long gone? Heck, around here, another storm will be approaching before those 30 minutes pass. Use the tools that you have available. If you don't have them, then go with the 30-minute guidelines.

No friends that are Air Traffic Controllers? - Maybe you should have spent your time in the Air Force. :D

Oh and by the way, here's an interesting little article that might not want to read before your trip down to FL.;);)

http://goflorida.about.com/od/florid.../weather_5.htm


I've been looking for an Android App that could show a map with my location and lightning strikes for a couple of years...
Just the other day (at a tornament) the UIC's wife turned me on to "Spark" which comes with the app "Weatherbug"
It updates every minute and tells you where the nearest lightning is and also has a little map feature.
I can't vouch for it's accuracy, but am trying to read up on it.

Weatherbug itself does a pretty nice job of showing stom movement.

'96 Men's A Industrial, late morning the UIC & Umpire Coodinator come to the fields and instruct us to stop the game and get everyone off the field and tell them to find cover. Everyone, umpires, players & fans, was confused as to what was going on. Sun was out and hot, no sign of anything threatening. We got to the umpire area, laughing and joking around, but still confused. Less than five minutes later, a nasty thunderstorm blew through with some rain, some lightning and, obviously, thunder. About 10 minutes or so later, the told the umpires to return to the fields and get em going again in about 5 minutes. Actually took closer to 10-15 by the time the teams got back from the parking lot.

The point is they did not hesitate once they knew the storm had cleared. The Tampa-Lakeland area is constantly dealing with this type of weather and they are the professionals when it comes to dealing with it. The whole area lightning-centric and I wouldn't hesitate for a second in trusting their judgment. .

One of the issues with T-storms is how quick they can develop. While I was still growing up, we had an issue with storms that quickly developed after another left the area. HS Football opener. Stadium was cleared as a T-storm moved through. 15 minutes passed since the last sight/sound of lightning/thunder (Guidelines in place at the time). Everyone is brought back into the stadium. As soon as the first snap after it resumed occurred. A huge flash of lightning occurred causing the stadium to be cleared again. As people were leaving the stadium going into the HS, a bolt hits the light pole, goes through the pole to the ground and seriously injures 9 high school students walking from the stadium towards the school.

The storm had suddenly developed largely from moisture that was left by the departing storm. The weather radar showed the storm developed rapidly right over the top of the stadium within a matter of a couple minutes.

This isn't the first time a storm like this developed quickly. Storms like this have been known to bring down planes. It might look clear after a storm, then suddenly, with little warning, another storm develops and all heck breaks loose.

Waiting the 30 minutes is a highly recommended guideline that should be followed. You never know what will happen after one storm has hit. Most of the time nothing happens, but there is always that slight chance that something bad will happen and that chance to to great to risk the life of people on a softball diamond.

My final comment on this topic.

WE, as umpires, have a duty to make sure the game is safe for all parties involved, including us as umpires, players, coaches and spectators. The single largest danger in outdoor sports is the weather.

No single weather phenomenon has the ability to cause quick and destructive damage to a softball game and everyone involved in it as that of a thunderstorm.

WE need to take the utmost care in dealing with these storms. The ASA's guidelines do allow for the return to play before 30 minutes when an advanced lightning detection system is in use. I understand that, but I personally still don't feel comfortable with allowing play to resume in less than 30 minutes even if a system is in use. The reason is that weather is too unpredictable. I have seen a storm develop right behind another storm too many times to think it won't happen. I have seen these advanced detection systems not sound and alarm when thunder and lightning are present in the area. I have seen too many storm related problems to trust that an electronic system will be able to protect people properly from storms.

I will always follow the guideline of 30 minutes even if the there is an electronic device that tells me it is safe. I would much rather get fired from working a tourney and have to fight to get paid than have someone get seriously injured or killed and have to fight a wrongful death lawsuit in court. Nobody's life is worth the risk of a few minutes of game time. There is way to much risk to getting going quickly and way to little reward.

I am glad that our local league has made it very clear that even in locations with an advanced detection system (2 of the many parks we use), we will not restart games until after the 30 minutes is up.

I am glad that I took a week off, I am going to speak about the Weather Bug App. I use it all of the time, it is a great tool to have. I still must wait 30 minutes. NY State says so, we do not have the same problems as in the south.

And the beat goes on

And I was thinking of telling the meteor story. Guess not a good idea.