Run a Heat Stroke Drill: Practice Your Cooling Plan Before Anyone Needs It

Most schools have an emergency plan on paper. Far fewer have ever tried it out loud, with a stopwatch running, on the field where it would happen. A heat stroke drill takes about as long as a water break and shows you where the plan breaks before an athlete is counting on it.

Exertional heat stroke is 100% survivable when the athlete is cooled fast, on site. A drill is how you find out whether your staff can actually do that.

What a Drill Shows You

• Whether people know their jobs. Who calls 911, who starts cooling, who meets the ambulance. A name on paper is not the same as a person who knows it is them.
• Whether the tub is ready. Is it filled, is the ice there, and is it close enough to the field, or is it locked in a shed across campus?
• Whether the ambulance can get in. A locked gate or a confusing entrance can cost time you don’t have.
• How long it really takes. Cooling should start within 10 minutes. Timing the drill tells you whether your setup makes that possible.

Before the Drill

• Start with a written plan for that field, gym or practice area. If you don’t have one, our free emergency action plan builder gives you a finished plan in your school’s name, including a section for more than one athlete going down.
• Pick a day when the coaches, athletic trainer and any regular volunteers are all there. Include the people who would really be on the field.
• Set up the cold-water immersion tub the way you would on a hot day. Our cooling station checklist lists what to have ready.
• Use a volunteer adult or a training mannequin as the “athlete.” You can practice every step up to the tub without putting anyone in cold water.
• Tell your local EMS you are practicing, and do not actually dial 911. Have the caller say out loud what they would tell the dispatcher, including the field address and gate.
• Give one person a stopwatch and a notepad. Their only job is to watch and write down times and problems.

Running the Drill

1. Start without warning the staff when. Have the “athlete” stumble or act confused during a normal drill, the way heat stroke often starts.
2. Start the clock the moment the athlete goes down.
3. Watch who acts first. Does someone stop the drill and get to the athlete right away?
4. Call 911 and start cooling at the same time. The caller practices the call while another person starts cooling. Note the time each one starts.
5. Move to the tub. Practice getting the athlete to the tub, or the tub to the athlete. Remove anything you can quickly but don’t delay cooling because of gear removal.
6. Practice ice agitation. Show where each person stands and how they keep the ice and water moving around the athlete.
7. Send someone to the gate. Time how long it takes them to get there and whether the gate is open.
8. Move the rest of the team to shade and water with another adult.
9. Stop the clock and write down the time to the 911 call, the time to the start of cooling, and the time to the gate.

After the Drill

Talk it through right away while everyone is still there. Ask three questions: what slowed us down, who wasn’t sure what to do, and what was missing. Then fix the plan, not just the people. If the tub was too far, move it. If the gate was locked, get a key to the person who opens it. If two people both tried to call 911, make the jobs clearer.

Run it again with the fix in place. Many programs drill before the season and again before the hottest stretch. New coaches and volunteers should see a drill before they work a hot practice.

Remember what the drill is practicing for: cool first, transport second. The goal is to bring body temperature down to about 102°F within 30 minutes, because at 104°F the body loses its ability to regulate its own temperature. Cold towels and ice packs are not enough. Read cool first, transport second, why cold towels don’t treat heat stroke and cold-water immersion for schools.

Practice the Signs Too

A drill only starts if someone notices. Before you run it, go over the signs with staff and athletes: confusion, strange answers, stumbling, falling behind, acting “out of it,” collapse or seizure. A player may still be sweating. When in doubt, treat it as heat stroke. See exertional heat stroke symptoms every coach and parent should know, and share our guide on looking out for teammates with your athletes.

MISSING: state association or district rules on emergency drills or rehearsing emergency action plans were not verified here; check your state association or district.

Bring Your Team Into National Stay Cool Day

National Stay Cool Day is April 8, 2027. Schools, coaches and youth programs can take part, and running a heat stroke drill with your staff is a strong way to get ready. Here’s how schools and programs can sign up.