PADUCAH, Ky. — Paducah is known for a lot of things: Quilts, Art, and, of course,the Ohio River. But next week, it’s going to be known as one of the cities in the path of totality for the solar eclipse.
Susan Edwards, the co-owner of Wildhair Studios’ Rock Shop said, “Solar Eclipse chasers are coming from all over the world, just to witness this celestial event.”
Edwards is one of the people getting the town ready for the big event. To make room for all the visitors, the city will be shutting down busy streets for the event, including the street where her shop is located.
“Broadway will be closed, we’ll have little pods with family-friendly activities like clip art and all the fun things that families will want to do when they are in town,” Edwards explained.
The solar eclipse in Paducah is unlike most other places, because it’s in the X marks the spot area, meaning the eclipse will pass through on the same path as 2017’s solar eclipse.
“Having those two make that cross over this region, it’s really unusual. It’s very rare,” Edwards noted.
The totality will happen at 2:00 p.m. CT in Paducah, and will last for about one minute and thirty-one seconds. Despite the short amount of time, it is estimated that thousands of people will be gathered on this sidewalk to watch it.
Liz Hammonds, director of marketing and communications for Paducah Convention & Visitors Bureau, said the city has been booked up for awhile now. “All of our hotels are completely booked, our airbnbs are too, and the governor mentioned that probably around 150,000 people are going to be in Western Kentucky, so we’ll be prepared for that too,” she said.