Pro baseball game in Changwon canceled for second day in a row due to extreme heat

A professional baseball game scheduled for Tuesday evening in Changwon was canceled due to extreme heat, marking the second consecutive day the match between the KIA Tigers and NC Dinos has been called off. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced the cancellation, citing the "extreme heatwave emergency" warning in effect for the region. Forecasts predicted temperatures to remain above 38 degrees Celsius (100.4 degrees Fahrenheit) at game time, prompting the KBO to prioritize the safety and health of spectators and players.

This marks the second day in a row that the Changwon venue, NC Park, has seen its game canceled because of the intense heat. Meanwhile, a game scheduled for the same evening in Busan between the Samsung Lions and Lotte Giants was delayed by 30 minutes, with a new start time of 6:30 p.m. The KBO explained that the Busan game was adjusted because temperatures were expected to decrease after the start of play. The league has recently adopted a more flexible approach to game scheduling in response to the ongoing heatwave. For games played outside the Seoul Gocheok Sky Dome, the league's only domed stadium, the KBO's game operations committee and club managers can now postpone start times by up to one hour after consultation. In areas under an extreme heatwave emergency warning, cancellations are actively considered alongside potential delays.

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The extreme heatwave emergency warning is in effect in the Changwon region, and with forecasts predicting temperatures to remain above 38 degrees Celsius even at game time, we have decided to cancel the game to prioritize the safety and health of spectators and players.

The "extreme heatwave emergency" warning, a new category introduced by the Korea Meteorological Administration this year, is issued when the apparent temperature remains above 35 degrees Celsius for more than two consecutive days, and either the apparent temperature reaches 38 degrees Celsius or higher, or the maximum temperature exceeds 39 degrees Celsius. The KBO's decision reflects a growing concern for athlete welfare amidst increasingly severe weather conditions impacting sporting events across the country.

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Because temperatures are expected to decrease after the game starts in the Busan region, we have delayed the start time.