LUCASVILLE, Ohio — The Scioto County Emergency Management Agency is urging parents to prepare a child-safety plan before this year’s Scioto County Fair, which draws thousands of families to the fairgrounds each summer.
The fair is scheduled to run Aug. 3-8 at the Scioto County Fairgrounds on Fairground Road in Lucasville. The event traces its roots to 1828, when the county’s first agricultural fair was organized, and it took its current form in 1908, when fairs previously held separately in Mt. Joy, Portsmouth and Lucasville merged into a single county fair.
In a post shared this week, the agency said parents should establish a communication plan, identify safe adults and prepare the right gear before heading to the fair with children. Specific recommendations include taking a reference photo of each child on the morning of the visit, writing a parent’s phone number on a wristband or directly on a child’s arm, and dressing children in bright, easy-to-spot clothing.
The agency also recommends picking a specific, physical landmark inside the fairgrounds as a meeting spot in case a child becomes separated from the group, and teaching children to look for uniformed fair staff or law enforcement officers — and to stay where they are rather than wander off looking for their parents — if they get lost.
Beyond keeping track of children in a crowd, the emergency management agency’s guidance also covers heat and hygiene at the summer event. It recommends closed-toe shoes to protect feet from hot pavement and heavy foot traffic, regular hand-washing or use of hand sanitizer after visiting restrooms or touching animals, frequent water breaks to prevent dehydration, and reapplication of mineral-based sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher every two hours, including on the scalp, ears and other exposed skin.
More tips and safety information are available at the agency’s website, sciotoema.com, according to the post.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Scioto County Emergency Management Agency.
