Raging wildfires in California continue to do serious damage in northern California. Concerns about the air quality are on the rise and that poses a threat to the health and safety of anyone attending Friday night’s Pac-12 game between Cal and Washington State. For now, there is no reason to call of or reschedule the game or transplant it to another location, but the Pac-12 and Cal are monitoring the situation as best they can to be prepared to make any adjustments necessary.
“There’s a level that they keep us updated on and what’s appropriate to work out in, so we were good,” Cal head coach Justin Wilcox said, per The Mercury News. “Obviously, (we’re) watching that and monitoring constantly.
According to NCAA guidelines, all athletes should be removed from the field if the air quality rating is 200 or above. As of Wednesday, the AQI in Berkley, California was 187. Per the NCAA, all athletes should be closely monitored in environments with an AQI rating over 150.
Stanford is also paying close attention to the air quality as they prepare for a Saturday night game against Oregon. As of now, Stanford expects their game to be on as scheduled against the Ducks.
Air quality issues were monitored earlier this season on the west coast, but no Pac-12 teams needed to adjust their schedules, although Oregon did re-locate a practice to a safer location.
The wildfires sweeping through northern California have claimed 24 lives so far.
