Lightning Emergency Action Plan

A lot of scenarios in preventing sudden death in sports require annual or semi-annual planning to be adequately prepared. Lightning emergencies, however, require daily vigilance to ensure that everything is being done to prevent catastrophic injury. In 2013 the NATA released a new position statement that covers Lightning preparedness and there are some important items to note from this document.

When it comes to lightning awareness and monitoring, these are daily steps that you need to ensure safety. Gone are the days of the flash-bang count. Now the presumption is that if you can hear thunder, lightning risk is imminent. While you can buy advanced equipment that monitors your fields, the ultimate decision should be based off close weather monitoring and on-site vigilance. It is incredibly important to have these criteria determined before any event, as hesitation can be very costly.

Whenever it is determined that lightning risk is elevated, all activities should be stopped immediately and individuals should be evacuated to safe structures. The key thing to remember with safe structures is that they need to be enclosed and grounded. Common mistakes are using pavilions or dugouts for evacuation structures, when these locations may actually put you more at risk. Finally, for large events you must consider extra time for evacuation of players, coaches and fans if there is not an adequate structure nearby.

First aid for lightning strikes can seem paradoxical, in that the mantra is to “Treat those who appear dead first”. Due to then nature of a lightning injury these individuals need to be treated rapidly to reverse their conditions. After any lightning strike it is extremely important to also rapidly evacuate victims and bystanders alike because there is always potential for a second strike.

Unfortunately there are a lot of myths about lightning that are perpetuated that must be overcome to ensure lightning safety. The ideas that lightning cannot strike when the sky is clear or that lightning does not strike the same place twice creates situations where individuals risk their own safety. In addition, there is no truth to the myths that lightning always strikes from the sky or that a car is a safe structure. Athletic trainers represent a great resource to educate coaches and athletes alike about lightning safety and avoid some hazardous pitfalls.

Lightning safety is a true test as to whether your emergency policies are adequate because they require daily vigilance and excellent procedures to ensure safety. For more information on lightning safety, visit ksi.uconn.edu.

Heat Safety Pledge

Mission Athletecare, a newly announced partner of the Korey Stringer Institute, has started a new effort to promote safety in high school athletics. They’ve created a pledge to provide $1,000,000 in cooling products to schools who create a safer playing environment for their athletes. Using current best practices recommendations, KSI has determined six pillars which prepare athletic programs for exercise in hot weather. You can find details on how to qualify here.

• Pillar 1: Thermometer- A wet bulb globe thermometer is on site at school and used to determine activity modifications based on environmental conditions. It is school policy to modify work to rest cycles based on environmental conditions.
• Pillar 2: Certification- All coaching staff is certified in first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of an automated external defibrillator. Additionally, education is provided related to preventing sudden death in sport.
• Pillar 3: Athletic Trainer- An athletic trainer is employed at your school and is on-site during practices and events.
• Pillar 4: Emergency Action Plan- A specific emergency action plan for each athletic facility has been developed where sports games and practices occur. This plan is reviewed with the healthcare team every year.
• Pillar 5: Heat Acclimatization Guidelines- School has adopted nationwide high school preseason heat acclimatization guidelines set forth by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association.
• Pillar 6: Water Stations/Body Cooling- Adequate water is available and placed at various stations around the athletic fields for all sports. At water stations, body cooling is standard practice. This can be as simple as encouraging players to remove equipment during rest breaks as using ice/cold towels.

Schools who qualify for the pledge will receive $1,000 in EnduraCool cooling products for your school to add to their arsenal of ways to stay cool. Mission wants to reward schools which place value on heat safety by putting in place the best policies to prevent and handle environmental heat stress. If you know of a school who may qualify, pass on the message, and have an administrator and athletic trainer contact Mission for further details.