Preparing for influx of 6,000 people

A wide variety of agencies are gearing up for what promises to be a major event for Thermopolis and Hot Springs County – the solar eclipse on Monday, Aug. 21.

Monthly meetings are being held to prepare for the influx of 6,000 or more people, many of whom are going to be from foreign countries, into the county to view the total solar eclipse, more people than actually live in Hot Springs County.

Every hotel and RV space available is already booked for that weekend since Thermopolis has been touted as an excellent place to view the celestial event due to our elevation.

Add to that that its Demolition Derby weekend.

Emergency Management Coordinator Bill Gordon said an Emergency Operations Center will be set up at the fire hall on 14th Street to handle as much of the load as possible, taking the heat off the dispatch center.

Gordon said they want to leave dispatch strictly to 9-1-1 calls so a “Hotline” number will be set up. The hotline will not be an emergency number, but rather a number visitors will be able to call to get information on viewing the eclipse as well as activities that will be going on throughout the weekend leading up to the Monday viewing.

“The county’s IT specialist has said this is possible,” Gordon said. “The set-up will be flexible and usable from land lines as well as cell phones. One thing to keep in mind is cell phone service may be down for the duration of the eclipse.”

Gordon has started a communications plan between the emergency responders and is working with the police department, sheriff’s office, highway patrol, national weather service and neighboring counties as well as the state.

“We are going to sit down with all these other agencies and determine which channels will be used for everything,” he said. “We will have this tested by August 1. All the other counties in the state are doing the same kind of preparation – every state and county in the path of the eclipse are doing the same thing.”

One scenario Gordon relayed to the group at the meeting included the use of the national weather service.

“Folks are going to be checking the weather constantly leading up to the eclipse,” he said. “Imagine its August in Hot Springs County. What do we usually have during August? That’s right, thunderstorms.

“These people see there’s a chance for cloud cover here, but it’s clear in Shoshoni, they’re going to be hopping in their vehicles and racing to Shoshoni so they don’t miss it. Through the canyon. Thousands of them.”

Some websites have been advertising Wind River Canyon as an excellent place to view the eclipse from. There is a very good chance people will be parked all along the canyon, on both sides, and not just in the provided turn outs.

Of course highway patrol will be working to keep the canyon as clear as possible, but they are discussing lowering the speed limit in the canyon through that weekend.

“If they have a great experience while they’re here, they’ll come back,” Chamber of Commerce Director Meri Ann Rush said.

To that end, Jessica Lippincott with the Wyoming Dinosaur Center said they have a number of activities planned for the weekend, including films, speakers, a kid’s dig and other children’s activities.

“We’ve been working with NASA,” Lippincott said. “We will be launching a weather balloon the day of the eclipse that will take photos from the stratosphere.”

There is also talk of a possible “Star Party” the night before the eclipse, perhaps at the old airport or in the buffalo pasture in the State Park.

The Second Friday ArtStroll is being moved to that weekend in the hopes the visitors will spend some time (and money) downtown.

A public meeting is planned for Tuesday, Jan. 24 at Big Horn Federal, starting at 6 p.m.

During that meeting, locals will hear more about the numbers of people we can expect. State wide, the estimate is 600,000.

There will also be tips on safe viewing of the eclipse and what locals can do to help handle the influx of visitors.

“Remember,” Gordon said, “we could be seriously taxed on our resources, everything from stores to grocery stores and restaurants. We need to be prepared as a community to handle this many people at once.”