Wet Weather and Extreme Heat Guidelines
IGSSA aims to provide the maximum number of playing opportunities for girls and the decision to cancel games is made carefully and on a venue by venue basis. Usually games are only cancelled when the weather makes play unsafe. This decision is made by the venue convener usually in conjunction with staff, coaches and the AHIGS Sports Director.
Due to changeable weather conditions, decisions are generally not made until Saturday morning and each round of play is reviewed to ensure that girls are given every opportunity to play their matches. Should any decision to abandon games be made on Fridays, a message will be recorded on the wet weather SMS service.
It is appreciated that parents and girls drive considerable distances to attend Saturday sport and that it is frustrating to arrive at a venue only to find that your game has been cancelled.
To minimize this, every attempt is made to communicate information quickly. As soon as a decision is made to abandon a round of games, the AHIGS Sports Director records it on the wet weather SMS service which may be accessed by texting 19922767. The wet weather SMS service always includes the time of the last update, that is, the last available venue decision received by the AHIGS Sports Director.
We apologize to those parents who are inconvenienced by this approach to inclement weather. Unfortunately our aim of maximizing playing opportunities over a large number of climatically different venues means that decisions can only usually be made on a Saturday morning and only then, on a case by case basis.
Lightning and Thunder Guidelines
Our lightning safety code is based on the 30 / 30 rule which calls for all play to be stopped when the lightning / thunder ratio reaches 30 seconds or less (ie. the time between when the lightning is seen and the last thunder is heard is 30 seconds or less).
When the 30 second ratio has been reached, this means that the lightning seen is 10 km away and the next strike has a “significant risk” of hitting the people who have seen the lightning and heard the thunder. All participants must be aware that in the event of lightning, play must not resume until 30 minutes after the last lightning strike and thunder.
All play must cease immediately if there is hail. All students, officials and spectators should seek cover immediately.
Extreme Heat Policy
Unless advised otherwise by your school, the wet weather SMS service or this website, all players should proceed to their venues on hot days.
The decision to stop play or cancel the match in the event of extreme heat will be made by each venue convener in consultation with team coaches, managers, players and umpires.
If play proceeds, girls should take care to remain properly hydrated. As a general rule, the hotter the day, the more breaks that are required as well as constant hydration.
SLIP, SLOP, SLAP & SLURP!!!!
No player should participate in a match if they feel distressed because of the heat.