April 8 will be a massive business opportunity for local merchants in the area, but a huge logistical challenge for first responders. That’s because the “path of totality” of a total eclipse of the sun will skirt the Lake Erie shoreline, and thousands of people will flock here to see it.

Speakers at a recent Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce workshop hammered those points home. First up was Tom Traub, NASA’s “eclipse ambassador,” who raised excitement with some facts about eclipses.

“Off from the southwest you’re going to see this huge shadow of the moon coming up over the top of you,” he said. “All of a sudden, all around you, is going to be twilight. It’s going to be like half an hour after sunset. All the brighter stars and planets are going to be in the sky. Around you, it’s going to be sunset for 360 degrees — and this is going to be at 3:18 in the afternoon.”

Traub said that when he was in Albuquerque, N.M., for another eclipse, “there were a lot of people there that specifically came into that area to view the eclipse. They stayed in the hotels locally, they ate locally. They looked for T-shirts — hey, here’s the eclipse — or a hat. Anything they can take and bring back with them as a token of that special time and that special event.”

The spectacle will cause people to flock from all over – and jam up the roads when it is done. Traub pointed out everyone who pulled over to see it will hit the roads at once. He told workshop attendees they should stay home April 8.

“They’re going to travel from all over to get there to see this. I’m talking from Europe, most of the United States,” he said, saying that when people see one eclipse, they want to see more.

The next speaker was Noel Guttman, Chautauqua County emergency management coordinator. “It’s very historically and scientifically significant for us,” he said.

“New York state and FEMA are starting to call this the largest mass travel day in U.S. history,” Guttman said.

A lot of people want to be in the middle of the path — which is in Lake Erie. “The Coast Guard’s expecting… tens of thousands of people on Lake Erie. We have like three boats that can go out there for emergency services. This is a logistical problem for the emergency services side.”

Guttman said he is strongly suggesting that schools close for the day – or kids could be stuck on school buses for hours, with the eclipse happening as they would be coming home.

The list of things emergency managers must prepare for is dizzying. Guttman mentioned that people gathering in fields and partying often start fires – but the state has a burn ban April 8. He also worried about cold-related injuries if the temperature takes a dive during the day and people are dressed for spring (the average temperature for April 8 is about 50 degrees).

Gas stations, restaurants, grocery stores and pharmacies could run dry, Guttman continued. Even veterinarians could be swamped – thousands of people will bring their pets for the spectacle.

But the expected surge of people into the area signifies a great business opportunity.

“The good news is – record income,” he said. “You see these after action reports (from previous eclipses), the amount of money that was spent in the path was ridiculous.”

Traub and Guttman both stressed that people need proper eye protection to watch the eclipse.

The final speaker was Andrew Nixon from the Chautauqua County Visitors Bureau.

“We don’t really have any number estimates… but we’re figuring the area will be at least as busy as a summer weekend,” Nixon said. “That’s quite a bit different from what normally happens in early April, which is a dead period of time. And that could be a gross underestimate.”

Since April 8 is a Monday, the visitors bureau is considering and promoting the event as a four-day weekend.

However, Nixon said, “most businesses just are not there yet. They’re only starting to think about things now, or not at all. We have to be sort of ready with a structure for them to provide information to us.”

The bureau has put an eclipse page on the TourChautauqua.com website. Nixon said businesses, parks and other sites have been listed as good viewing sites – but he wants more eclipse-specfic information for them.

They have a slogan: “Turn 4 Minutes Into 4 Days of Total Fun.”

Nixon said local visitors’ bureaus must supplement the county’s eclipse efforts with their own outreach.