County planning for total eclipse of the sun 2024

The County has started planning related to being in the direct path of a rare total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, which has the potential to attract many visitors to the area.

While long-time County residents will recall viewing events through pinhole cameras during school years, they were only partial views of total solar eclipses.

Total solar eclipses are rare events. Although they occur somewhere on earth every 18 months on average, it is estimated they recur at any given place only once every 360 to 410 years, on average.

The County is in the “path of totality” where the sun will be completely blocked by the moon.

Notable Ontarian cities in the path of totality include Niagara Falls, Hamilton, Kingston, Montréal and more. Other major cities such as Toronto and Ottawa however, are not in the path of totality. People in these cities will still see most of the eclipse, but will miss the spectacle of absolute totality. The path of totality is approximately 185-km wide stretching across the United States and Canada.

Click here to see the path.

In Picton, the total eclipse is predicted to begin at 3:21 p.m. and last for three minutes and two seconds.

As people living outside the path of totality are expected to travel to experience the celestial event, the County’s Municipal Emergency Control Group (MECG) and several community partners met recently for a preliminary discussion about the event.

Some of the topics covered include traffic control, health and safety, and communications. Also of concern is that looking directly at the solar eclipse without proper eye protection is dangerous and could lead to permanent eye damage.

The group will meet in the months ahead, with the frequency of meetings increasing closer to the date of the total solar eclipse.