After much discussion between the Hydro Free Fair Board and its chosen amusement company, the 2020 Hydro Free Fair has been cancelled for the first time since World War I, this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Charlie Wieland, who heads the fair board, made the announcement on the fair’s Facebook last week citing concerns for the staff and community. The unanimous decision was made by the board, food vendors, the City of Hydro and the amusement company.
“It was a very good decision and a good discussion,” Wieland said. “Here’s the thing which came up the most when we had this discussion: the safety of the workers and the safety of the community.”
Wieland said worker safety was top priority because the public has the choice to come, but employees are being asked to put themselves at risk for others.
“It’s one thing to ask someone to work,” Wieland said. “It’s another to try and persuade them, intimidate them or tell them their concerns are silly. That is going too far and we didn’t want to jeopardize anyone’s health.”
The community also has a great concern as the fair draws people from across the nation and beyond. Wieland said people from out of state and even out of the country had made their way to the fair. In addition, people “come home” for the fair, many from areas where COVID-19 is more prominent.
“We just draw a large crowd and believe it would be a safety issue for the community,” Wieland said.
Wieland also said there was a lot of uncertainty if they did choose to proceed with the fair. It was time where the board would need to start ordering everything, so they had to make a decision. The board did not want to have those expenses only to cancel at the last minute.
In addition, Wieland said they did not want to expose staff to potentially contaminated supplies from outside of the area. He also said it would have been arrogant of them to continue with the plans when many of those involved may feel uncomfortable.
The comments on the Facebook post expressed disappointment but understanding of why the decision was made. Several commenters said they would love to see the 2020 fair T-shirts still sold this year.
This is the first time the fair has been cancelled since World War I. Wieland said the board has begun discussion for next year’s fair.
“We hope you will be understanding and hope you will anticipate the 2021 Hydro Free Fair,” Wieland said.