ANDERSON — Local officials are planning for the great North American eclipse that will take place one year from today.
Madison County, along with most of Central Indiana, is in the direct path of a total solar eclipse that will take place on April 8, 2024.
There won’t be another total solar eclipse in Indiana until 2153. Next year’s eclipse will be the first in the region since the year 1205.
Jeff Dyer, director of the Madison County Emergency Management Agency, said the local agency has been working with the state on planning for the event.
Projections are that there will be three million visitors to the state of Indiana, with as many as 130,000 people coming to Madison County.
The eclipse is expected to take place at approximately 3 p.m. that day.
“We’re working with the Chamber of Commerce, Visitors Bureau, police chiefs and the school systems,” Dyer said.
“We’re in the direct path of the for eclipse,” he added.
Dyer said the Indiana State Parks will be the focus for people to view the eclipse. Campgrounds, he noted, are already booked up.
“There is only one exit from the Mounds State Park,” he said. “There are a lot of potential problems.”
Dyer said local officials are working to designate safe viewing areas for both residents and visitors to Madison County.
“We will have special glasses available for purchase,” he said. “There will be a lot of people coming into the area in addition to the normal population of the county.”
Dyer said the county will have plans in place and the public will be informed of those plans as they’re developed.
Clayton Whitson, president and CEO of the Madison County Chamber of Commerce, said the eclipse is an opportunity to promote tourism in the county.
“We’ve had conversations with the Visitors Bureau because this is a significant opportunity for the county,” he said. “We want to work to make it a weeklong event to encourage tourism.”
Whitson said people will be traveling to Indiana and Madison County from around the country to view the eclipse.
“We want to try and use our existing venues for viewing locations, like Hoosier Park and Anderson Speedway,” he said.
Indianapolis is planning more than 100 events for the weekend leading up to the solar eclipse.
Among the planned events are a viewing celebration at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway; a food truck festival at White River State Park; and an event at the Children's Museum of Indianapolis.
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