Cool moon rising
We see tourism on the way
The “path of totality” sounds like a Buddhist phrase or other Eastern spiritual practice. Or it could be the name of an alternative rock band.
In the case before you today, Gentle Reader, it’s neither. The “path of totality” is what the swath of Earth lying beneath a total eclipse of the sun is called—and Arkansas will be in the dead center of it come April. The coming total eclipse that everybody is talking about is the first to cover the state since 1918.
Residents of cities as large as Little Rock and as small as Ozone will be in its path. According to TimeandDate. com, 652 million people worldwide will have a chance to see at least a partial eclipse, and 193 million will see a 90 percent eclipse. Slightly less than 44 million might see it in its totality on April 8, 2024. (Clouds could ruin it for you.)
This phenomenon is as predictable as, ahem, the sun rising. What’s less predictable is what will happen on the ground.
Russellville, in particular, is seeing stars in the form of tourism that makes the 2,500 people who run in the RussVegas Half Marathon look like child’s play.
State officials estimate that up to 1.5 million could come to Arkansas for the event. That would increase Arkansas’ population by 50 percent. Russellville is prepping for 100,000 such skywatchers. We have little doubt the local economy will reap big rewards.
Already, 50 of the 100 available reservations for landing at Russellville’s Muni Airport-Rue have been taken, according to the paper. The Courtyard, one of 15 hotels that can accommodate 1,000 visitors, has a waiting list.
The weekend before April 8—the eclipse comes on a Monday—50 vendor spots will be made available in downtown Russellville. They’re working to ensure cellphone coverage is not clogged like it is outside Razorback Stadium when only 70,000 people are present. Police are interviewing landowners to understand access points for emergencies. NASA will have a presence.
We would be remiss if we didn’t mention there will be a sudden influx of Porta-Potties (200 of them).
Too much prep/hype? Nope. We’ve all seen the Woodstock documentary.
Hopkinsville, Ky., and Caspar, Wyo., are similar in size—and they were in the path during the most recent total eclipse over the United States in 2017. Both Hopkinsville (intersection of I-24 and I-69) and Russellville (I-40) are just off major interstates. Hopkinsville (pop. 30,000) estimates its number of visitors to be 116,000.
Caspar lost cellphone coverage for nine hours, said Christie Graham, Russellville’s executive director of tourism. “Hopkinsville did not. So you take both of those, we don’t know where we’re at in that. We don’t know what will happen with ours.” We feel certain that the planning, at least, will include Plan Bs, and Plan Cs, Ds and Es.
Tourism is a major draw in Arkansas anyway, so there should be plenty of folks working on this—especially since we can predict it so far in advance.
Now if the weather will just cooperate in early April.
To infinity and beyond! Or at least to Little Rock, Hot Springs, Texarkana, Batesville, Jonesboro, Ozone, Russellville . . . .