SCOTT COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark — Excitement is growing as we are just days away from the total solar eclipse that is set to take place on Monday, April 8.
State and county emergency management agencies have been planning for the big day since 2021.
The total solar eclipse is expected to bring as many as 1.5 million tourists to Arkansas. Some of the best places to watch the eclipse are in Scott and Johnson counties.
"We feel like we're ready to keep this county and community safe and for our guests to have a very good time," Dr. Rickey Casey, director of Emergency Management in Johnson County, said.
To ensure safety, Casey said the county will be fully staffed with crews staged at different locations to make sure 911 calls are being answered and first responders can get where they need to go. Casey said they will have a mobile communication trailer for extra people to take 911 calls as well.
Even with the planning, Casey said there are still a few concerns for emergency crews.
"We are concerned about making sure we get our ambulances, our law enforcement, and our fire departments to any events," Casey said.
The director said law enforcement agencies will do everything they can to keep "at least one lane open for emergency traffic."
In Scott County, Director of Emergency Management Keaton Davis said their first responders are "used to responding to different calls." On that day, they will just have to work a higher number of cases.
"You can't plan for everything, but you can absolutely prepare and get information out to your first responders," Davis said.
With the solar eclipse expected to be the largest tourism event in Arkansas history, Davis says it’s all hands on deck.
In their department, they'll have 10 people and each person has their own different job and responsibilities.
"What we've asked our fire departments to do is at least staff three people in each station that day," Davis said. "We have 17 total fire departments in the county. I know that the sheriff's office, as well as the city PD, are going to increase their staffing that day, as far as shifts go. So they're going to add some extra shifts to make sure there's extra patrol and extra protection that day,"
Scott County crews aren’t so much worried about response times as they are about the influx of visitors.
"There's going to be an infrastructure overload no matter where you're at in the state of Arkansas, so we're just watching mainly traffic congestion, gridlock, [and] making sure people have access to things that they need," Davis said.
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