THE GREAT ALLENTOWN FAIR NEWS---

Great Allentown Fair targeted 'like a bull's-eye' by thunderstorms, flooding

 

The Great Allentown Fair's Zac Brown Band concert was cut short Thursday due to hazardous weather conditions.
(Express-Times Photo | MATT SMITH)
From:  lehighvalleylive.com
By Colin McEvoy | The Express-Times
August 30, 2013
Even 15 minutes before the heavy rains began, the weather report around the Great Allentown Fair looked clear and dry.
But a sudden thunderstorm concentrated directly over the Allentown Fairgrounds resulted in an abrupt end to festivities Thursday night, and left several cars stranded in the flooded city streets.
"We were truly in a unique situation last night," said fair spokeswoman Bonnie Brosious. "When you look at the weather patterns, we almost appeared to be like a bull's-eye last night."
An estimated 20,000 patrons and 4,000 workers were at the fair about 9:45 p.m., when the rain forced an early end to the popular Zac Brown Band concert and the closing of the fair for the night. The fair continues through Monday night.

About 13 cars became stranded on Sumner Avenue alone and required drivers to be rescued, said Allentown Assistant Fire Chief Lee Laubach.
A handful of cars became stranded in other parts of the city as well, but Laubach said most were in the city's west end, particularly people attempting to leave the fair.
"It was pretty much a flash flood, and the drainage couldn't handle all the water because it came down so fast in one localized area -- which, unfortunately, was around the fairgrounds," he said.
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