Inclement Weather

When encountering inclement weather (thunder and lightning) please follow these recommendations:

National Lightning Safety Institute:

The National Lightning Safety Institute recommends the following swimming pool safety procedures:

1. Designate a responsible person as the weather safety lookout. That person should keep an eye on the weather. Check the weather and radar on a reliable phone app to obtain good localized advanced weather information.
2. When thunder and/or lightning are first noticed, use the Flash-To-Bang (F-B) method to determine its’ rough distance and speed. This technique measures the time from seeing lightning to hearing associated thunder. For each five seconds from F-B, lightning is one mile away. Thus, a F-B of 10 = 2 miles; 15 = 3 miles; 20 = 4 miles; etc. At a F-B count of thirty, the pool should be evacuated. People should be directed to safe shelter nearby.
3. Pool activities should remain suspended until thirty minutes after the last thunder is heard. The distance from Strike A to Strike B to Strike C can be some 5-8 miles away. And it can strike much farther away. Why take a chance with lightning?

Teach this safety slogan:
"If you can see it, flee it; if you can hear it, clear it."

The League also recommends:

• At the first clap of thunder or lightning strike immediately empty the pool of all swimmers
• Decide with the opposing coaches and parent reps how to proceed...whether to continue or cancel the meet.

Suggested options:

• Cancel the meet (if a B-meet you do not need to reschedule)
• If a Tuesday meet, cancel the meet and combine with the Thursday meet
• Reschedule the meet (suggested, if possible, for A-meets as it would affect your League standings)
• If you continue the meet but run out of time the current score should stand unless you decide to continue at a later date

When encountering unusually hot weather please follow these recommendations:

• Encourage swimmers to drink plenty of water
• As the host club, have water ready to offer your on deck volunteers
• Encourage swimmers to rest between events
• Provide shaded areas if your club does not provide natural shade (trees, permanent coverings, etc)
• Encourage swimmers to cover up when out of the pool