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CANFIELD -- Months of work on safety planning and how best to handle emergencies precede the 177th Canfield Fair.
It's been a group effort among the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Ohio Homeland Security, the Youngstown Police Bomb Squad and Task Force, Canfield police, Mahoning County Sheriff's Office, Cardinal Joint Fire District and fire departments from throughout the county.
"We've had roughly eight meetings on security (with many departments) and have a plan in place to make it the safest fair possible," fair board President Bob Jarvis said.
According to Mahoning County Court Judge Scott Hunter, a fair director in charge of security, extensive training and coordination are employed by all police agencies during the fair.
This year things have been stepped up a bit.
"We are enhancing and increasing our uniformed police presence, not just to our fair police department but also with the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office," Hunter said. "We are increasing the technology available to law enforcement to enhance our police presence. All of these efforts are designed to offer the public attending this year's fair the safest possible experience."
Police at the fair reserve the right to look into what people bring in, Hunter said.
"There will not be metal detectors at the entrance gates to the fair. We do reserve the right to search bags, strollers, etc. Security at the grandstand events will be determined by the contract with the artist / event," he said.
Hunter said fairgoers need to understand what is not allowed on the grounds.
"Firearms or guns of any kind, knives, Tasers, laser pointers, facial coverings other than surgical or KN95 masks are not permitted on the fairgrounds. Still cameras and video cameras are not permitted in the grandstand area. Both our code of conduct and dress code policies will be strictly enforced," he said.
As for the fair's dress code, shirts and pants or their equivalent or skirts must be worn at all times. Clothing must cover undergarments. Hoods are prohibited along with any other headwear that prevents an individual's face from being readily visible and not interfere with a line of sight of law enforcement, except for the wearing of a headdress for legitimate and validated religious reasons.
No obscene, indecent, violent or other messages or depictions of drugs, hate speech, profanity or prejudice, weapons or gang affiliation shall be viewable on any clothing or attire. No clothing accessories of any kind shall be allowed on the fairgrounds that could be dangerous or used as a weapon.
The intent of the dress code is to promote a safe and family-friendly environment. Anyone breaking the policy could be refused admittance onto the fairgrounds or could be removed.
The security policy was discussed in light of fights at last year's Canfield Fair and apparent shots fired in the parking area.
Last year, a fracas among up to 100 people brought a large police presence to the fairgrounds Saturday night. Three adults and seven juveniles were detained; one of the boys had a gun, a report stated.
No one was injured, but reports showed two vehicles had bullet holes.
The first fight apparently started when two fair police officers observed four females fighting in front of The Beast ride near Milton Drive. The females resisted by not obeying officers' commands and pulling away.
After the initial incident, a large group, estimated between 75 and 100, began forming and dispersing at various times, running away from officers, who tried to keep these groups from forming and creating chaos.
Another skirmish occurred near Coitsville and Bishop drives where other individuals joined in. While this incident was going on, fair police were alerted that shots were fired near Gate C. A Canfield city police officer pursued a male wearing a white hooded sweatshirt near one of the barns. During the chase, the officer noted that he spotted a handgun under a Jeep. After the boy, 15, was apprehended, the officer located the weapon, a 9mm handgun with no rounds found in the chamber or magazine.
He spent a term in the Mahoning County Juvenile Justice Center before being released.