A look at how the weekend’s FairWell Festival went amid parking and traffic changes, high heat – and a stormy pause
REMOND, Ore (KTVZ). -- The weekend's second annual FairWell Festival at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds came to a dramatic close Sunday night, delayed a bit by stormy weather that prompted sending the thousands of attendees indoors to the First Interstate Bank Center for a time.
The National Weather Service warned shortly before 6 p.m. of a strong thunderstorm near Redmond and Terrebonne, moving north at 30 mph, with winds gusting to 40 mph and half-inch hail. They recommended, if outdoors, to consider seeking shelter inside a building.
So that's what festival officials did, announced a weather delay on their website and Facebook page: “Due to an approaching storm, performances have been suspended momentarily. We expect this to be a temporary delay. Please head to the First Interstate Bank Center and await further updates.”
Someone told NewsChannel 21 about the event suspension and said, "Hope it passes quick … hot in here !” at the Expo Center. And indeed, festival organizers soon said the event had resumed.
The changes to fix some parking, traffic and other issues from last year appear to have drawn wide praise, judging from Facebook comments on "so many improvements from last year," and a "great variety of top-notch performers." There were some complaints, of course, such as people littering and a need for hand-washing stations.
Earlier story:
Staff have been busy this week setting up for tens of thousands of attendees to descend on the FairWell Festival. With temperatures forecast to once again reach the triple digits this weekend in Redmond, Saturday being the peak, the second annual FairWell Festival is preparing ways for festival-goers to beat the heat and stay safe and comfortable.
Included in their prep work are additional shade, misting stations and more water stations to counteract the triple-digit temperatures.
"Seek out shade, seek out those mist tents - that will really help cool you down if you're feeling hot," Emily Holton, program manager with Deschutes County Health Services, said Thursday. "And again, being aware, guiding our friends to those places, it's not always the most fun to be in like a tent somewhere."
Horton says the festival has partnered with Deschutes County Health and set up medical stations throughout the venue. There will be multiple shaded areas and four medical stations scattered throughout the site.
"We have medical staff that are at festivals and different places, and their job is to keep us safe," said Horton said.
Attendees should be mindful of heat-related issues when enjoying the performances.
Horton said symptoms include, "profuse sweating, clammy, really high body temperature, starting to get confused or acting strange, maybe seeming like they might pass out."
Heat-related illnesses are common on triple-digit days -- St. Charles tells NewsChannel 21 over the last month, they've seen a handful of heat-related issues in the ER.
The festival encourages fans to arrive hydrated, bring water, and replenish at the refill stations.
"If someone's starting to act strange or, you know, they seem like they're a little more sweaty than normal or clammy, there's lots of help around," Horton said.
Many people drink alcohol at concerts, which makes hydration even more crucial. There will be five large refill water stations and one large misting area in the center for folks to cool off
"Alcohol is a diuretic and it can help with -, it helps us become dehydrated more quickly," Horton said. "Drink a lot of water. don't drink too much alcohol. Have fun and stay safe."
The festival takes place Friday through Sunday, with performances lasting about 11 hours. Organizers encourage folks to prepare by wearing light clothing and a hat, bring sunscreen, and a refillable water bottle to stay hydrated.
