BOISE, Idaho — Tropical Storm Hilary is expected to bring rain to Idaho and the predicted weather is having an impact on one of the biggest events in the Treasure Valley, The Western Idaho Fair.
People that were planning to hit the fair early Monday will have to adjust their plans. The fair is delaying Monday's opening by two hours, so instead of starting at noon, it will open at 2 p.m.
"It's going to drop most of the rain when we're all in bed sleeping at night," Director of the Western Idaho Fair, Bob Batista said. "So, for the precaution of the guests, for the vendors, and for our staff - we're going to delay that because we don't know what we're going to face in the morning."
Monday could bring puddles and mud as rain could still be falling. Batista said the two-hour-delay will give them time to assess the situation and adjust accordingly.
"Not all the rides can operate. You know, it creates a problem for some of the vendors if we get a bunch of rain and their booths are full of water," Batista said. "So these are all little things that we've sat down and talked about, and thought ahead about and making sure that we have people in certain places so people can get to their booths. We've done our research and our due diligence to make sure all of it is about safety."
For people that may be concerned about rain later in the day, the fairgrounds have several buildings and barns where people can stay dry.
"Barns have all the animals you can see. The Expo has commercial and competitive exhibits. There's shade tents that we have, if you want to get some to eat and go sit down and wait until it clears off," Batista said. "We have all kinds of options, and we're creating these options for you in a safe environment."
The rain is only expected to delay Monday's opening and then things at the fair are back on track.
"We've got all the bases covered as far as places you can go and stuff," Batista said. "But we just want to make sure the place is ready to go. Not a lot of standing water and stuff, but what don't know what the storm brings."
The fair is still having a $7 admission on Monday, which is part of KTVB Day at the fair. However, because of the rain, the station will not be on the grounds. Instead, people can join KTVB at the fair on Thursday, where the station will be live throughout the day.
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