LEBANON, Tenn. (WTVF) — Thousands of people spent hours in the heat at the Wilson County Tennessee State Fair over the weekend, and there is almost a week of the fair left to go.
On Monday, some Tennessee teens found creative ways to stay cool while doing their FFA judging at the fair — from shirts draped over their heads to small spray bottles, improvised fans made from clipboards, and lemonade from a stand on the fairgrounds.
Kylie, Lily and Ellie, FFA students from Westmoreland, were already following the top advice from safety officials when they picked up their lemonades and sweet tea.
"Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. That's the most important thing. You're out there, you're sweating it all out. You need to replenish all of those electrolytes and everything that you're sweating out," said Maegan Eldridge, a public information officer for the Wilson County Emergency Management Agency.
Maegan Eldridge of the Wilson County Emergency Management Agency is working at the fair to keep people safe in the heat — but her advice applies well beyond the fairgrounds.
She recommends wearing light-colored, loose clothing and taking time to cool off several times throughout the day.
"There are so many air-conditioned buildings at the fair. Fiddler's Grove is fully shaded, and we've got fans," Eldridge said.
She said anyone experiencing the following symptoms should get out of the heat immediately.
"Getting dizzy, nauseous, headache, you know, elevated heart rate, any of those types of things, it is definitely time to go sit down, find some AC," Eldridge said.
Fair organizers are working to prevent heat-related illness, offering free water, popsicles, cooling stations and more.
"They're very good about providing water here, so there are lots of water stations set up everywhere," said Lillian Hester and Jade Adams, two Westmoreland FFA students attending the fair.
Despite the heat, fair organizers said they have been prepared for this.
"This is probably the warmest one that we've had in our 47 years, but we've planned for it, and our plans have been successful," said Randall Clemons, president of Wilson County Promotions, which is the sponsor of the Wilson County Tennessee State Fair.
Clemons said attendance is down about 15% so far this year, which he said is fairly normal in a hot year.
They expect some visitors to have delayed their trip and plan to attend later in the week if the weather cools down.
This story was reported on-air by journalist Robb Coles and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at robb.coles@newschannel5.com.
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