ROSEVILLE, Calif. — A number of school districts are having student athletes practice indoors with hot temperatures in the forecast this week.
On Tuesday, temperatures were forecast to hit 106 degrees in Roseville. With the hot temperatures in mind, Oakmont High School had practices indoors during the hottest parts of the day to avoid heat-related illnesses.
“The heat risk index, that is very important for us to be looking at,” said Tim Moore, Athletic Director for Oakmont High School.
Oakmont's football team has a big game coming up this Friday, which makes practice critical.
“We’re playing Roseville, our home opener this Friday night, and as of right now, we’re just getting ready," said quarterback Beau Ogles, who is a junior at Oakmont this year.
Ogles is one of many athletes making the best of moving indoors.
“It’s a challenge but our coaches make sure we’re getting the right stuff in our bodies during practice, taking extra breaks, getting a lot of water and hydrating, and nutrition-wise after.”
Moore said keeping up with adequate hydration and good nutrition helps his athletes stay on the field longer throughout the season as fall sports ramp up.
“They’re getting ready to get their seasons started, so the whole practicing right now is very important to the coaches and the athletes and not being able to practice where they’re used to practicing is frustrating, so we’re just making it work and getting through these hot days," Moore said.
The Roseville Joint Union High School District follows California Department of Public Health Guidelines on hot days to avoid heat related illnesses.
CDPH’s HeatRisk grid recommends that schools cancel outdoor activities on hot days from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
“The forecast is showing pretty good heat tomorrow as well, so it’s an hourly deal,” Moore said. “Today is a red zone, major, so not practicing between 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. outdoors. But after that, we’ll be checking to see if we move down to the moderate stage. If we get down to that, we can start letting practices happen outside.”
ABC10 reached out to several other districts to see what their plan is during the heat. San Juan Unified School District said they rescheduled practices for earlier in the day or moved them indoors.
Elk Grove Unified School District has directed coaches to move practices either in the morning before school or in the evening starting at 7pm.
"Elk Grove Unified follows Sacramento County Public Health recommendations regarding excessive heat warnings, and during the day, EGUSD schools follow inclement weather day protocols and procedures similar to rainy days where teaching and student activities remain indoors to avoid excessive heat exposure," said EGUSD Communications Manager James Tan in a statement.
They added that they recommend practices be cancelled if alternate arrangements can't be made.
In a statement to ABC10, Folsom Cordova Unified School District spokesperson, Angela Griffin Ankhelyi, said. "because of the heat, all after-school sport practices will be indoors at FCUSD schools. If teams are practicing after 7 p.m. and the heat has abated, some teams may conduct practice outside at that time."
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