About the only thing certain about Monday, April 8 is that the skies will grow dark in the early afternoon.

Mineola and Wood County are directly in the path of a total solar eclipse with expected totality approaching four minutes.

Mineola city officials held a briefing on potential impacts last Thursday for businesses.

The city previously canceled plans for an event at the nature preserve, which will be closed that day.

Among items from the briefing were plans to close the preserve at sundown on Sunday, April 7.

Building inspector Justin Clower explained that it will be closed off similar to how it is done when the annual youth hunt is held there during January.

Police Chief Chuck Bittner said anyone going into the preserve when it is closed is subject to criminal trespass charges, but he prefers not to have to do that.

Bittner also cleared up a rumor that Mineola officers would be deployed to other areas on that day.

They will all be in the city. “We’re taking care of our people,” he said.

Fire Marshal David Madsen, who conducted the briefing, said traffic is the main concern, based on after-action reports filed following the total eclipse in August 2017 that went through the center of the nation.

Much of that traffic is concentrated in the immediate aftermath of the eclipse.

Totality of three minutes, 45 seconds will end between 1:46 and 1:47 p.m., and the partial eclipse of two hours, 40 minutes will go on until 3:04 p.m.

“We don’t know for sure what’s going to happen,” Madsen said.

The information that cities and counties began receiving from the state department of emergency management in November said that nobody expected the millions of people who would travel to see the 2017 eclipse.

Other impacts included food shortages as groceries were bought up by visitors, as well as fuel.

There were sanitation issues, particularly where landowners rented their property to visitors for camping.

The event can place an extreme demand on resources, Madsen said, especially along the main routes (two U.S. highways intersect in Mineola).

Madsen noted that Sulphur Springs has been named the eighth best spot for viewing in the nation.

If that city has cloud cover that day and it is clear here, many more visitors could flood the area, with predictions of two to three times the population of a given area.

Hotels and RV parks are booked, Madsen said.

Anyone hosting numbers of visitors is requested to let the city know the location and number of visitors.

“We’re not regulating that,” he said. But that information is being requested to help with emergency planning.

As an example, Madsen said April is peak storm season, and if a storm impacts an area where there is an unexpected crowd of visitors, emergency officials can use that information to help deploy resources.

Along with traffic issues come parking issues.

The police department will be doing its best to control that, especially in the downtown area.

Local citizens are encouraged to stock up on fuel and groceries in advance of the busy weekend leading up to the eclipse, expected to begin ramping up on Thursday, April 4.

Cell phone service is likely to be overwhelmed on that day, which could lead to issues with businesses who use cell-based service for credit card charges.

Banks are advised to prepare for ATMs to run out of cash.

9-1-1 emergency calling could also become overwhelmed.

Madsen noted many restaurants are closed on Monday. Those that plan to be open should consider having extra food should the predicted crowds materialize.

“We’re not recommending either way (open or close),” he said, just offering advice to be prepared.

The same with schools (no recommendation). Some in the area are closing.

Mineola schools will be open, with plans for specialized programs about the eclipse and providing eclipse viewing glasses.

Madsen said businesses selling or handing out eclipse glasses should ensure they meet ISO safety standard 12312-2.

About 30 attended the briefing and were encouraged to reach out to other businesses that did not have representatives.

Anyone with concerns is encouraged to contact city officials.