‘No such thing as too much planning;’ Law enforcement thankful for smooth solar eclipse

DAYTON — There was a whole lot of excitement in the Miami Valley after Monday’s total solar eclipse, but one thing we didn’t see was the massive traffic jams that law enforcement agencies feared.

After the eclipse, News Center 7 talked to visitors from out of state hoping to avoid traffic jams.

>> PHOTOS: Total solar eclipse passes through the Miami Valley

“We’re hoping not to spend so many hours in the car at one time and maybe beat some of the traffic,” Leigh McKenzie, of South Carolina, said.

After being on the highway himself, News Center 7′s John Bedell reported that the traffic jams never showed up after the solar cover-up.

An estimate from the state on the number of visitors is expected later this week, but several law enforcement agencies told News Center 7 that, even with well-attended events, they saw nowhere near the population increase predictions based on research from the 2017 eclipse.

“Especially what we heard in Tennessee, how they had 7.4 million additional visitors and the horror stories that happened there and the horror stories that happened in Wyoming,” Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Matt Haines said.

>> PHOTOS: Miami Valley getting ready for total solar eclipse

Several agencies said they weren’t quite sure what to expect for eclipse day in the Miami Valley.

“We didn’t know if people would learn from that and decide that they didn’t want to be part of those crowds, or if everybody would show up,” Haines said.

Haines was also far from alone in saying they felt good about their preparations and were relieved to have experienced the eclipse smoothly.

“I think with emergency services there’s no such thing as going too much planning, too much preparation,” he said.

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