Mark your calendars for April 8th, 2024! Ohio is just two years away from seeing a once-in-a-lifetime event, a total solar eclipse.
Lima sits near the epicenter which is expected to draw people to our area. For the first time in over 200 years, the Buckeye State will experience a total solar eclipse in April 2024. This will look entirely different than the partial eclipse you may recall in 2017. Lima sits near the epicenter of the event and is a prime location to draw folks to the area.
“For us locally, what we're being told to expect is basically a doubling to tripling of our population,” says Tom Berger Allen County EMA Director
While it can be challenging to plan for something that happens once in a lifetime, the county's emergency personnel are already making preparations, with safety on everyone's mind.
“We started back in December of 2021 we had our first planning meeting. Our first responders, fire, EMS, law enforcement, we've been meeting monthly to start our planning for that,” adds Berger.
The influx of people to the area will be a boom for area businesses, and everyone is encouraged to start planning ahead.
“What we're stressing to folks is to start planning. That April 8th is on a Monday. We anticipate we are going to have an influx of traffic on our roadways, hotels, restaurants, campsites are definitely going to see an impact,” states Berger.
The timeframe for the total eclipse is roughly four minutes from 3:09 to 3:13 that afternoon. The skies will turn dark, and you'll be able to look at the sun with your naked eye. You'll want to document every moment of this special day. Ohio's next total eclipse won't happen until 2099.
