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One Texas town hopes being in the path of Monday’s total solar eclipse will propel tourists and residents to see the community in an entirely different light after it was the site of one of the nation’s deadliest school shootings.

Uvalde — whose 15,000 residents are still reeling from the May 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 19 children and two adults dead — expects nearly seven times as many visitors for Monday’s eclipse, the Daily Mail first reported Saturday.

The eclipse will send the region into darkness for four minutes and 18 seconds, according to NASA’s tracker.

“We anticipate somewhere between 50,000 to 75,000 visitors to attend throughout the county,” John Yeakle, director of tourism for the Uvalde Area Chamber of Commerce, told The Post Saturday.

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to host the many visitors from all over the world to our wonderful community. We hope to showcase the natural beauty of our location, as well as the warm, friendly diversity of Uvalde.”


  Uvalde County expects as many as 75,000 visitors for Monday’s eclipse, roughly three times its total population. Uvalde County Solar Eclipse Uvalde County expects as many as 75,000 visitors for Monday’s eclipse, roughly three times its total population. Uvalde County Solar Eclipse

The expected tsunami of visitors to experience Monday’s 115-mile-wide path of totality in Uvalde comes less than two years after Salvador Ramos, 18, stormed into a fourth-grade classroom and opened fire — killing 19 students and two teachers on May 24, 2022.

“We are and have always been far more than simply an unfortunate victim of school violence,” Yeackle said.

Everything to know about the 2024 solar eclipse

  • The solar eclipse will take place Monday, April 8, blocking the sun for over 180 million people in its path.
  • The eclipse will expand from Mexico’s Pacific Coast across North America, hitting 15 US states and pulling itself all the way to the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.
  • New Yorkers will experience the solar eclipse just after 2 p.m. Monday.
  • A huge explosion on the sun, known as a coronal mass ejection, is anticipated, according to experts. This happens when massive particles from the sun are hurled out into space, explains Ryan French of the National Solar Observatory in Boulder, Colorado.
  • To avoid serious injury to the eyes, it is necessary to view the event through proper eyewear like eclipse glasses, or a handheld solar viewer, during the partial eclipse phase before and after totality.
  • The next total solar eclipse will take place on Aug. 12, 2026, and totality will be visible to those in Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia and a small slice of Portugal. 

The “tragedy was horrific and hearts go out to the families that were most directly affected,” he told the Daily Mail. “Everybody that lives here in Uvalde is probably no more than one degree of separation from someone that was there that day. And I’m no different.”

Uvalde should be seen by outsiders as a “gateway” to southwest Texas rather than the site of one of the nation’s deadliest school shootings, Yeackle added.


  Retailers throughout Uvalde County hope Monday’s eclipse will be a welcome windfall for the community still reeling from the May 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 21 people dead, including 19 young students. Uvalde County Solar Eclipse Retailers throughout Uvalde County hope Monday’s eclipse will be a welcome windfall for the community still reeling from the May 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 21 people dead, including 19 young students. Uvalde County Solar Eclipse

“We’re not interested in inviting more people,” he told the outlet. “We’re concerned with dealing with those already planning to come.”

Yeackle estimated two-thirds of visitors will be driving from elsewhere in Texas, including Houston, San Antonio and Austin.

“We have maybe 4 million people within 200 miles of us,” the tourism director told the Mail of the expected traffic gridlock. “There will be hours and hours of delays on the two major arteries.”

Uvalde County, meanwhile, is a “prime location” to view astronomical events like total solar eclipses due to expansive areas devoid of light pollution, officials said.

“The Great State of Texas is considered to be one of the best states for viewing due to favorable weather and is predicted to have the highest visitation along the whole path,” a Uvalde County Visitors Center website reads.

“Come and enjoy our nature, wildlife and rivers while experiencing one of nature’s greatest celestial shows.”

Ramos, who was killed by authorities responding to the school, had complained about being bullied while in fourth grade at Robb Elementary School just weeks prior to the shooting, investigators later determined.


  Memorials for the 21 victims at Robb Elementary School were unveiled at Uvalde’s town square on Feb. 26, Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK Memorials for the 21 victims at Robb Elementary School were unveiled at Uvalde’s town square on Feb. 26, Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez, who was on vacation during the bloodbath, resigned his post last month after a city-commissioned report defended the agency’s response — which a scathing Department of Justice report found “demonstrated no urgency” — leaving some relatives of the 21 victims outraged.

Rodriguez’s resignation took effect on Saturday — and Uvalde Mayor Cody Smith abruptly stepped down Monday, citing “unexpected medical issues I have experienced in recent weeks,” he said, according to the Austin American-Statesman.

Mayor Pro-Tem Everardo Zamora will step in until the November election.

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