Mayfest happening this weekend along Trinity River
FORT WORTH, Texas - Vendors at Trinity Park in Fort Worth tied down tents ahead of Thursday’s Mayfest opening.
The annual event is on weather watch, staying in communication with the city office of emergency management. There’s a plan in place in case severe weather strikes and organizers said they can evacuate all guests in less than 30 minutes.
“Of course, we have to look at the lightning. We have to look at the wind gusts. Is there a potential of hail coming down?” said Elizabeth Basham, the Mayfest executive director. “This is not anything that we’re unaccustomed to doing. We’re Mayfest and so we pull up our boots and we’re ready to hit the ground running.”
Thursday night’s strong winds kept Mayfest vendors on their toes.
Rusty Poole with Leaf Filter Gutter protection says the sudden wind gusts caught him off guard.
“It was pretty strong. We actually had to tie down back here so this didn't take off,” he said. “They said everything was going to stay south. But you know how that goes. This is Texas!”
Some families had the right idea. They were armed with ponchos and umbrellas for a rainy first day at Mayfest.
Rain boots were a must-have for some of the muddy puddles scattered throughout Trinity Park.
“The only bad thing about it is the rain and the weather right now that’s keeping a lot of people away,” said visitor Scott Madison. “I mean, we came out here. It was like, ‘Hey, it’s free!’ So we came out here”
Mayfest officials say they’re prepared to make last minute adjustments if weather becomes a problem, but they’re crossing their fingers for as little rain as possible.
Mayfest runs through Sunday with lots of live music, festival food, art vendors, carnival rides, bounce houses, performing arts, a petting zoo, paddle boats, rock climbing, and free children’s activities.
FOX 4 and Good Day personalities will be in a booth next to the funnel cake stand all weekend. Viewers are invited to stop by and take pictures.
The proceeds from each year’s festival are used for the Trinity River, surrounding parks and community programs.
LINK: www.mayfest.org