Latest news, weather, high school sports for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

ESCANABA -- Last Saturday, a 60 to 70 mile per hour gust of wind toppled the roof of a concert stage at the Indiana State Fair and left five people dead.

And organizers of the U.P. State Fair in Escanaba have reevaluated and improved their safety plan.

But how concerned are the U.P. fair-goers?

“I think it's every parent's own judgment,” said fair-goer, Pamela Cole.  “It’s their judgment to take their own precautions with their family, but we've been here before to see the beef steer, the horses, and there's no reason that we feel the fair would be unsafe."

Ms. Cole said she's confident in the safety of the rides, which organizers say have all been inspected.

But what about inclement weather?

“Let's face it,” explains Jimmy Jay, Talent Coordinator.  “The U.P. doesn't get the same storms that we get down in Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee where we do a lot of our work."

But it's the grandstand events that'll keep workers especially busy.  Tuesday, the crews will start work on the grandstand stage at 10:30 p.m.  They'll work all through the night, and at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Skid Row, Warrant, and Dokken will be there doing line checks.

Still, there is a game plan in case of an emergency.

“We can lower that stage down to almost laying it flat on the floor,”  Jay said.  “Also, a big cover roof like this, that's 60 x 60 feet, acts like a sail in the wind."

The U.P. State Fair organizers said while ticket sales are their top priority, safety is, of course, always on their minds.