Llano County on eclipse: Be ready

First responders are ready for whatever might happen during the total solar eclipse on April 8, but residents also need to be prepared, Llano County Emergency Management Coordinator Gilbert Bennet told county commissioners at their regular meeting on Monday, Feb. 26.

“Every individual and neighborhood needs to be prepared for this event,” he said.

However, he reminded everyone that the eclipse “is not an emergency; this is an event.”

“It is not a declared disaster in Llano County, yet,” he continued. “You can’t holler fire until you see a fire.”

The path of the eclipse will go directly over Llano County, making it one of the best places to observe the celestial event. The eclipse will begin at 12:16 p.m. on April 8 and end by 2:57 p.m.

The window of totality, when the moon completely blocks the sun’s rays, will occur in the middle of that timeframe, beginning at 1:36 p.m. and lasting about four minutes and 23 seconds. 

Officials are conservatively estimating that the county’s population will increase by about 50 percent on the day of the eclipse, which could cause major traffic congestion at locations such as the Roy Inks Bridge in Llano. 

Estimates are based on what happened in rural towns, like Madras, Oregon, during the 2017 total solar eclipse. The population in Madras went from 7,700 to 100,000 on the day of that eclipse — a 1,200 percent increase.

“There’s things you can control and there’s things you can’t control,” County Judge Ron Cunningham said. “We can’t control the number of people that want to come to Llano County. The only thing we can do is be prepared for what we anticipate.”

The Commissioners Court approved spending $8,800 on pre-staged fuel for emergency vehicles. An extra portable restroom will be placed at Llano County Park. Ten haul-off dumpsters will be rented to deal with the expected litter visitors could leave behind.

Eleven deputies and three dispatchers will be on duty at all times for the expected impact days of April 4-9, said Llano County Sheriff Bill Blackburn.

Bennett recommended residents do their grocery shopping and make necessary preparations by April 1 to avoid competing with visitors. He said grocery stores and gas stations could run out of essentials during the impact days.

According to Commissioner Linda Raschke, almost every single hotel and motel room, along with all short-term rentals, in Llano County have been booked for the days surrounding the eclipse. She made the firm recommendation that residents and visitors with accommodations stay in one place and avoid travel on April 8.

Local churches and county spaces could be used as temporary shelters for those stranded due to fuel shortages and traffic jams.

Llano County offices and Llano Independent School District campuses will be closed on April 8.

“We’re all in this together, and we’ll get through this as a team and a community,” Bennett said.

dakota@thepicayune.com