Having a written plan or policy is the primary step in preventing casualties due to lightning. As part of that plan, it is important to mandate checking weather reports each day before a practice or event. In this way, you will be aware of the possibility of storms forming or moving into the area during the day. There are also numerous Internet sites that give timely weather information, as well as lightning flash data. Prevention also means that everyone should be wary of the signs of thunderstorms developing nearby.
Thunderstorms can become threatening in as little as half an hour.
The next measure in mitigating the lightning threat is for everyone to know where the closest safe structure or location is to the field or playing area, and to know how long it takes to get to that place. This should be your primary choice in seeking a safer location from the lightning threat. A vehicle with a hard metal roof if certainly safer than remaining outdoors. It is not the rubber tires that make a vehicle a safe shelter, but the hard metal roof that transfers the lightning channel around the vehicle. It is extremely important not to touch any part of the metal framework of the vehicle while inside the vehicle.