About 160,000 people are expected to travel to Vermont for the total solar eclipse on April 8, according to the latest estimates from the state. That's a big influx of people for this brave little state.
Eric Forand, director of Vermont Emergency Management, and Jayna Morse, commander of the Agency of Transportation's incident command center for the eclipse, offered guidance to Vermonters on how to safely view the upcoming eclipse. Keegan Tierney, director of field programs for the Green Mountain Club, also weighed in on outdoor and state park safety.
First step: have a plan.
Forand said they're urging people to make their eclipse viewing plans as soon as possible. Still, he knows there will be some people who wait to decide on their plans until the day of the eclipse.
"That's the segment of the visitors that we're worried about," he said. "Those individuals that have planned their events, have their hotel rooms, know where they're going, know how they're going to get there and know how they're gonna get home, we're not as worried about those. [It's] the individuals that wake up Monday morning and decide to come to Vermont."
Forand added that the weather is still unknown. "As we all know, Vermont's weather could be sunny, rainy, snowy, muddy, all of the above," he said.
Give yourself plenty of time.
Maybe on a normal day, it doesn't take very long to get to a friend's house, but on the day of the eclipse, be sure to factor in that it could take much longer.
"It's going to be difficult to predict today what we might see for traffic," Morse said. She added that NewEngland511.org will provide the most up-to-date information on the status of state roads across New England.
"You can see any delays or incidents that might be occurring on the roads," she said.
When it comes to local or municipal roads, Forand said to use the directional app Waze.
"That's where we're encouraging local municipalities to update their information on, but it's also self-directed by actual travelers, so it has pretty up-to-date information," he said.
Stay out of the backcountry
The Green Mountain Club is encouraging people to stay off the backcountry trails. One big reason: mud, mud, mud.
"Regardless of whether it's mud season on the roads or not, it's going to be mud season in the backcountry," Tierney said. "It's a time of year that we typically ask folks to stay off the trails anyway, for protection of the trail tread and the resources around it."
Tierney said there will also be limited access to emergency resources.
"If somebody was to get hurt in the backcountry, it's always a longer evac[uation]. But if emergency response planners are going to be busy with front country incidents or traffic, that time could be expanded and exacerbated even more during the eclipse," he said.
While the state parks aren't open for the season yet, Tierney said some parks at lower elevations will be open with limited resources, including Mt. Philo, Grand Isle, and Knight Point, with a full list on the state website.
Keep gas tanks full
While it might be easy to ignore a dipping gas tank, err on the side of caution.
"Don't wait as long as you may on a normal day," Forand said. "Say it gets down to a quarter of a tank, start looking for stations sooner rather than later. Vermont obviously doesn't have a lot of exits, so you don't want to get caught out on the highway without fuel."
Forand and his employees have coordinated with local fuel dealers to make sure gas stations near the highway are taking deliveries before the day of the eclipse.
911 calls will get through
Vermont Emergency Management has been in contact with cell service providers since early last year to get ready for the influx of cell users.
While there might be slowdowns to cell service as people try to stream the eclipse or call friends and family during totality, Forand says he's confident the state's cell towers can handle the increased traffic. In particular, emergency 911 calls will receive top priority.
"We did verify with the cell phone providers that 911 access gets preemptive service," Forand said. "Regardless of your service provider, if you call 911, you jump to the front of the queue, and your 911 call goes through first."
Broadcast live on Monday, March 25, 2024, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.
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More eclipse resources
- See our eclipse liveblog for the latest updates.
- Watch our half-hour educational TV special, "Path to Totality."
- See our interactive map of the eclipse path.
- Plan for road closures around the state.
- Get updates on the weather forecast for Monday.
- Emergency management officials share travel and communication tips.
- Where to find eclipse glasses.
- Learning guides for preK-12 educators.
- Details on our live event in St. Johnsbury and other events around the state.
See all of Vermont Public's 2024 eclipse coverage.
