Clay County Sheriff deals with traffic problems at the Strawberry Festival

Clay County, Florida – Since thousands of the Clay County Fairgrounds for the Strawberry Festival pack this weekend, Sheriff Michelle Cook complains about traffic jams.

Dozens of people who took part in the festival on Saturday complain on the Facebook page of the Sheriff office of the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and said they were in traffic for hours to leave the event.

“In recent years we have gone back and forth with the promoter about the security and traffic needs for the Strawberry Festival,” wrote Cook on Facebook.

She said that despite the organizers of the festival, which increases the number of deputies to meet the traffic needs, the sheriff office had to call more staff to support traffic on Saturday.

Cook said that the festival entry fate was closed early due to traffic and security problems.

A CCSO spokesman told First coastal news The sheriff’s office only had more than 30 employees at the festival for transport requirements and had to call more employees to help.

“Our MPs were out there all day without breaks,” wrote Cook. “We had to call a personnel -free staff to help. This is unacceptable.”

A woman told First coastal news She was three hours in the parking lot in the parking lot on Saturday afternoon.

“We don’t return to Clay County Fairgrounds,” said Kim Gager First coastal news.

Gager said when she arrived at the festival around 11:30 a.m., the traffic was what she was used to. When she and her husband left around 2:30 p.m., they noticed the traffic jams.

“Everyone only watched the clock, electric vehicles burned through their batteries, feared that they would not have enough electricity to come home,” she said.

Gager said she didn’t get out of the parking lot until around 5:30 p.m.

“It shouldn’t be rocket science,” said Gager about traffic management.

Cook said that the Sheriff’s office will not support the festival in the future if the organizers do not hire enough employees to support incident management team and a “comprehensive traffic plan”.

“I encourage everyone to send an e -mail to the organizers and inform them about their experiences,” she added.

Cook said the organizers of the Strawberry Festival were not the same as the Clay County Fair.

The festival will continue on Sunday, and Cook said that it commissioned more staff-free staff, even though they were added: “Taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay for a private provider event.”