FLOW Area December 4, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 5 Lightning safety policy approved by school board by Frank J. McMahon The Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School Board of Education has adopted a new policy on lightning safety on school grounds. The policy states that lightning is a massive electro- static discharge between electrically charged regions within clouds, or between clouds and the Earth’s surface. Lightning primarily occurs when warm air is mixed with colder air masses, resulting in atmospheric distur- bances necessary for polarizing the atmosphere. Light- ning can occur at any time of the year, and lightning strikes between a cloud and the ground can cause signifi- cant damage to property, and injury and death to people on the ground. People who are outside are not safe when lightning is present. The policy also advises that although lightning is always accompanied by thunder, distant lightning may be visible, yet too far away for the thunder to be heard. Therefore, people using the school grounds are required to immediately leave the outside areas for a safe location if lightning is seen, regardless of the distance, or if thunder is heard, regardless of its loudness. The board of education indicated that it has a lightning detection system on school grounds to assist people to determine if lightning is in the area and cannot be seen from the ground. In the event a lightning detection system is operational on school grounds, that system will detect if lightning is in the area and an alarm system will be activated. The alarm will be a continuous blast for approximately 15 seconds and the detection system may have a strobe light that flashes when lightning is detected. Every person outside on school grounds must immediately evacuate to a safe location if the alarm blasts continuously for 15 sec- onds, if the system’s strobe light is flashing, if lightning can be seen, or if thunder is heard. No person will be allowed to return to the outside areas of school grounds until the threat of lightning has clearly past. In the event the initial evacuation was prompted by seeing lightning or hearing thunder, the school grounds can be reoccupied no sooner than 30 minutes after seeing lightning or hearing thunder. According to the policy, nowhere outside is safe, includ- ing under trees, in or under tents or canopy buildings, or under building overhangs or porches. In the event the initial evacuation was prompted by a lightning detection system’s alarm and/or flashing strobe light, the school grounds cannot be reoccupied until the lightning detection system blasts three short, five-second blasts and the strobe light turns off, if the system has a strobe light. The person in charge of the non-school related orga- nization using the outside areas of school grounds will be responsible to ensure the provisions of this policy are (continued on page 31)