Jan Wesner Childs
Tracking the weather on college football game days is a big deal, especially during the late summer and early fall when thunderstorms and severe weather can still be common in many parts of the country.
What you should know:
-Some college football stadiums hold upwards of 100,000 people. But there isn't always room for them to shelter.
-Plans vary by venue but in some cases, fans might be asked to move to nearby buildings on campus or other safe areas.
-Many venues or universities have safety apps. Game attendees should subscribe to alerts from those sources, as well as local authorities, apps such as The Weather Channel and the National Weather Service.
-Monitor the weather before you leave home and make a decision as to whether it's safe to be outside or not.
Matt Brachowski, a senior associate athletic director at the University of Georgia, tells us:
-“Eight miles radius of lightning within the stadium is when we would stop play ... 15 miles from the stadium is when we alert the fans in the stadium that severe weather is in the area and that we could potentially be in a situation where we have to ask fans to leave the stadium."
-"To make those decisions, we have (a) web-based app that we have a subscription to that provides both the weather data with meteorological support through their website ... And then we also use a climatologist at the stadium to help monitor weather patterns.
-It's a lot of coordination with all our different partners, whether it's the event staff within the stadium or law enforcement to notify. And a lot of it's going to be dependent on the fans to listen to the message and kind of still stay in a calm but proactive manner to leave the stadium."
Weather.com meteorologist Danielle Banks adds:
-Studies have shown that the majority of people get struck by lightning between the hours of 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., which is when many athletic games and practices are taking place. However, it’s important to keep in mind that lightning can strike at any time of day.
-A fan who is sitting in a stadium may have limited visual range. Or they may be having such a good time rooting on their team, staring at the jumbotron or grabbing something at the concession stand that they might not know about weather dangers that could be headed their way.
-Weather safety is a group effort, so it’s wonderful to see more and more stadium managers being proactive about protecting their guests from lightning.
MORE ON WEATHER.COM
-READ: What To Know About Severe Weather During Outdoor Events
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Weather.com reporter Jan Childs covers breaking news and features related to weather, space, climate change, the environment and everything in between.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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