When thunder roars, GO INDOORS

Baseball Oshawa follows Environment Canada guidelines with respect to lightning safety: When thunder roars, GO INDOORS!
If you can hear thunder, you can get hit by lightning. Take shelter immediately. If you cannot find a sturdy, fully enclosed building with wiring and plumbing, get into a metal-roofed vehicle. Stay inside for 30 minutes after the last rumble of thunder.
Direct strikes are responsible for only 5% of lightning-related deaths and injuries. Two other types of hazardous phenomena are caused by lightning. Ground current and side flash account for 60 to 80% of lightning-related injuries and deaths. A ground current is set up when lightning hits the ground, spreads out and sends a current through a victim. Side splash occurs when lightning hits a tall object, travels partly down the object and then jumps to a nearby victim.

Lightning: Please remember, the baseball season is a prime time for thunder storms, so be aware of lightning and remember the 30-30 Rule.

30-30 Rule:
        Determine the threat of lightning in your area.

30 minutes: After the last rumble of thunder, wait 30 minutes before leaving shelter. Half of all lightning deaths occur after the storm passes. Stay in a safe area until you are sure the threat has passed.
 

Environment Canada states “it’s not necessarily the direct lightning strike that will injure or kill a player.  During a lightning storm the atmosphere becomes electrified. Lightning streamers from the ground are trying to connect up with the lightning strike making its way from the cloud to the ground. If these streamers form on a fence/lamp post or even a player, damage can occur to a player’s nervous system and brain making them unfit to play.  People can recover from this close encounter with lightning but some damage can last a lifetime.”

While the 30/30 rules provides a timeline to protect oneself during a thunderstorm while participating in an outdoor activity, in 2011,Environment Canada adopted a much clearer statement. “When thunder roars, GO INDOORS” or in French “Quand le tonnerre gronde, RENTREZ VITE!” 

The following video focuses on soccer players but could easily be applied to baseball players. http://www.ec.gc.ca/foudre-lightning/default.asp?lang=En&n=54B219E5-1

Environment Canada also provides tools to help you with your decision of when to play or when to suspend or cancel practices/games. The Canadian Lightning Danger Map (CLDM) which is available on mobile devices. http://weather.gc.ca/lightning/index_e.html.