The total solar eclipse is scheduled to make an appearance in Freestone County on the afternoon of April 8.
County officials are expecting many visitors to witness the event. The partial eclipse is projected to begin at 12:20 p.m. April 8, with the totality running from 1:37-1:41 p.m. and the end of the eclipse at 3 p.m.
The office of emergency management has a few pointers regarding this:
“Over the past several months, Freestone County has worked to prepare for the upcoming Total Solar Eclipse. We’ve met numerous times with our emergency responders, municipalities, civic organizations, state and regional partners, and anyone else who made a request. Thousands and possibly tens of thousands of visitors in Freestone County during the April 5-9 timeframe.”
County officials said that there will be two types of visitors - travelers and day trippers.
“Travelers are those who are coming in early and plan to stay through the eclipse. They will be from all over the world and will begin arriving days in advance of April 8. Some will arrive on tour buses; others will be in rent cars, RVs, etc. They will stay in hotels, RVs, bed and breakfasts, tents, rental houses, etc. They will need fuel, food, and access to restrooms. They may inundate local restaurants, gas stations, and merchants of all types. They will visit points of interest throughout Freestone County such as Richland Chambers Reservoir, the Trinity River, historic sites, and local hangouts that they’ve found when doing their research on ‘What to do in Freestone County,’ or ‘Best Bars and Restaurants in Freestone County.’
“Daytrippers are more local and plan to drive in early Monday morning the 8th, then leave when the eclipse ends. This group is here for the eclipse only. They plan to grab a burger and a beer at local hangouts and maybe shop a little. Otherwise, they want to get here, see the eclipse, and get gone. We expect very heavy traffic in key areas beginning late Sunday night and early Monday morning.”
Officials also expect traffic to be at its worst following the end of the eclipse, or around 3 p.m. April 8.
“Travelers and day trippers will all try to leave at the same time. Expect total gridlock in many areas as has been the case with other total solar eclipse events in recent years. Some will run out of fuel sitting in traffic for hours, others will have bathroom emergencies that just can’t wait. Tempers may flare as frustration grows due to the never-ending traffic backups.”
Officals recommend that residents stay home and watch the eclipse from their own front or back yard.
They also made other recommendations.
“Make sure you have fuel, food, medicines, etc. to last several days. Do your stocking up well in advance of that weekend. Prepare like you would for an impending winter storm. If you have visitors coming to stay with you, ask them to arrive a day or so early and plan to stay overnight on Monday. Hopefully, they can get out sometime on Tuesday, April 9.”
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