As severe heat wave warnings hit the Seoul metropolitan area and Chungcheong provinces, scorching the entire country, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) has decided to cancel all games for now and hold an emergency meeting on heat wave countermeasures.
The KBO Secretariat stated that it takes a serious view of the reality where safety risks for spectators and players are arising due to the extreme heat, and will hold an emergency executive committee meeting tomorrow attended by general managers from all 10 clubs and representatives of the Korea Pro Baseball Players Association.
With the top priority placed on the safety of spectators and players, the KBO plans to discuss comprehensive operational guidelines and safety measures regarding heat waves from scratch.
Consequently, the KBO decided to cancel all first and second-division professional baseball games scheduled for today and tomorrow (August 5 to 6) until comprehensive measures are established.
This brings the total number of games canceled due to heat waves this year to 15, while the total number of canceled games due to rain and other factors reaches 40.
The KBO Secretariat previously announced detailed, tiered game operation rules regarding heat waves on the 4th.
Under the rules, games proceed normally when a heat wave advisory is issued, while a heat wave warning allows the start time to be delayed by up to 1 hour based on the home team's opinion.
When a severe heat wave warning—issued when the daily peak perceived temperature is expected to reach 38°C or the daily peak temperature 39°C or higher—is in effect, games are to be canceled by 1 PM at the latest, putting safety as the top priority.
Yesterday, the game scheduled between the NC Dinos and Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul, as well as the game scheduled between kt wiz and the KIA Tigers at Gwangju Kia Champions Field, were both canceled as the first cases under the activation of severe heat wave warnings.
However, despite these measures, an emergency situation occurred during the game between the LG Twins and SSG Landers at SSG 랜더스필드 (Incheon SSG Landers Field), where a spectator collapsed due to heat-related illness symptoms. In response, the KBO Secretariat decided to comprehensively reexamine its heat wave countermeasures for safety.
Reported by Kim Taewon | Video by Lee Eui-sun | Graphics by Yook Do-hyun | Produced by SBS Digital News
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