We are just a couple of months away from a total solar eclipse happening over North Texas. One small city will have the longest period of totality. We’re talking about Ennis– which is just south of Dallas– in Ellis County. NBC 5’s Vince Sims has more on how they are getting ready to be the center of attention.
The small town of Ennis is getting ready for the influx of visitors for the April 8 total eclipse.
In the historic downtown of Ennis, the owner of Fern In the Wild restaurant and store is excited about the upcoming eclipse.
"It’s going to be amazing,” Fern In the Wild owner Morgan Ruffin said. “A once-in-a-lifetime event.”
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Ruffin is already planning for the large crowds coming to town.
“There’s a lot that goes into it,” Ruffin said. “We are already looking at extra inventory, ordering all the extra food and scheduling. We are typically closed on Mondays. So, we are going to be open that day.”
“We are told on a low end an additional 50,000 people for that weekend,” City of Ennis marketing and communications director Ashley Colunga said. “On a high end 250,000 people.”
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These are people coming from all around the world.
“We’ve heard from people coming from New Zealand,” Colunga said. “We’ve got a gentleman coming from Paris. We’ve got people coming from Bejing. We have a large group coming from London all right here to Ennis.”
The city is planning a big downtown watch party.
“The main event that the city is hosting is our downtown watch party which will be right here in historic downtown,” Colunga said. “We’ll have food trucks, live music by Le Freak, a countdown to eclipse so it will be a very fun experience here in downtown. But there are also businesses all over downtown planning watch parties.”
With crowds of this size city leaders are also preparing to keep everyone safe.
“Ambulance service, emergency response, emergency communication centers,” Colunga said. “Bringing in additional cell towers. So again, city leadership is working really hard to make sure this goes smoothly and is enjoyable for everyone.”
Everyone is just planning ahead to make the April 8th eclipse a memorable event.
“It can be overwhelming, but in the restaurant industry and events in downtown and things like that you have to be ready for things,” Ruffin said. So, you just prepare best you can.”
Ennis residents will have a chance to ask questions and get answers to any concerns at a town hall meeting scheduled for March 21.
To learn about Ennis eclipse events click here.
