‘We are Ohio’s place in space;’ Thousands expected to visit Auglaize Co. for total eclipse
Communities all over the Miami Valley are preparing for the total solar eclipse, but especially those in the path of totality.
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People in Auglaize County are tapping into their rich space history to prepare.
“We are Ohio’s place in space,” said Logan Rex, Curator and Communications Director of the Armstrong Air and Space Museum.
The Armstrong Air and Space Museum is one of the only air and space museums in the nationwide path of totality.
“This will be some of the longest viewing time in Ohio and coincidentally, we are a space museum so a lot of people are looking at us as one of their prime locations to go,” Rex said.
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They’ll have a weekend full of events leading up to the moment of totality.
“Ohio has been so rich in aviation and space history and having this amazing natural event is just really just a cherry on top,” Rex said.
Wapakoneta itself is sort of the go-to place for space with its out-of-this-world hometown hero Neil Armstrong.
“It was just one of those things that lined up for us in a way that we knew we had to rise to the occasion,” said Jackie Martell, Executive Director of the Wapakoneta Chamber of Commerce.
With their space connection, she knew the city needed to get in line with the eclipse hype.
“It is an entire weekend starting the Thursday before there are so many events every single day,” Martell said.
They are expecting as many as 100 thousand people to visit Auglaize County for the weekend.
Ohio’s Emergency Management Association has been helping make sure the county is ready for the major influx of people.
“All the communities in the path of totality are pretty much working together to go through all the scenarios and prepare,” Martell said.
Preparing not just for the visitors, but for that once-in-a-lifetime moment.
“I mean this is such a beautiful experience and I think it can’t be understated that that you need to really prepare for this,” Rex said.
For more information on the total eclipse, you can click here.
