[Anchor]
Extreme heatwaves approaching 40 degrees Celsius have blanketed the entire country. Beyond just hot, the weather is threatening lives, and professional baseball has ultimately come to a halt. Following a series of harrowing incidents yesterday (August 4) where spectators passed out, all games scheduled for today and tomorrow have been canceled. This marks the first time in history that professional baseball has been completely suspended due to a heatwave.
Our first report comes from reporter Jeon Yeongmin.
[Reporter]
During yesterday's game between SSG and LG in Incheon, players and umpires preparing for the top of the 9th inning simultaneously look toward the stands.
A man in his 20s, identified as Mr. A, who was cheering in the first-base stands, suddenly lost consciousness and collapsed.
After emergency personnel performed CPR and even used an automated external defibrillator (AED), Mr. A regained consciousness and was rushed straight to the hospital. Shortly afterward, another man in his 20s, Mr. B, collapsed, and after receiving CPR, he also regained consciousness and was transported to the hospital.
The KBO, which had already canceled five games up until yesterday after players complained of heat-related illness symptoms starting last week, declared a complete suspension of the league after yesterday's harrowing accidents involving two spectators losing consciousness.
This is the first time professional baseball schedules have been suspended since the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago, and the very first time games have been stopped due to a heatwave.
[Koo Ja-wook / Samsung Outfielder: It seemed like the hottest day I've ever experienced while playing baseball. Sweat wouldn't cool down throughout the entire game, making it an exhausting match, and I didn't want to come outside.]
The KBO will hold a meeting tomorrow involving general managers from all 10 clubs and the Players Association to discuss future countermeasures.
Although new operational standards regarding game cancellations and delayed starts under heatwave conditions were just announced yesterday, the successive emergency situations led them to re-examine the policy from scratch.
With no way to predict when the league will resume at this point, a prolonged heatwave is likely to extend the hiatus of professional baseball as well.
Meanwhile, professional football has decided to delay this weekend's matches, originally scheduled to start at 7:30 PM, by 30 minutes to kick off at 8:00 PM.
(Video Editing: Lee Jae-sung)
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