CLEVELAND — News 5 has been working to prepare you and your family for weeks for the solar eclipse. Much of Northeast Ohio is in the coveted path of totality on April 8th. As that date inches closer, the anticipation of logistical nightmares on the roads around your neighborhood grows.
In 2017, Dana Norris of Kent traveled with her husband and then three-year-old son to the path of totality. The family watched the world go dark for a moment in Southern Kentucky. The drive down was trouble-free, taking about five hours. The drive home, though, was something the family couldn't have prepared for.
Norris recounted her experience driving more than seven hours from Kentucky to Cincinnati. She shared her story on TikTok, which is now viral, with more than one million views and thousands of comments from people all across Northeast Ohio and beyond.
Watch Norris's viral TikTok below. Warning: Video contains profanity. Viewer discretion advised.
@danastoryclub #2024eclipse #eclipseprep #donotattempt ♬ original sound - danastoryclub
"After the eclipse we got on the highway and every single on-ramp onto the highway—I would say about 20,000 other people also got on the highway," said Norris.
Norris continued, "It's sort of like 100 concerts letting out at the same time, in close proximity to each other."
Norris remembers living on the packed PB&J sandwiches and allowing her young son unlimited screen time on the iPad just to make it through. Finally, the family got to a gas station,
"It was wild in there, like there were like three people working and they were like, 'I would just like to stop now,' but they couldn't because we just kept coming at them. The bathroom...whoa girl!" said Norris.
The Ohio Department of Transportation created a traffic predictor map to help you plan out your travel on eclipse day. You can use the hour-by-hour prediction system for scenarios with different amounts of visitors byclicking here.
"These are going to be small roads that don't normally see tens of thousands of people that could potentially be seeing tens of thousands of vehicles," said Matt Bruning, Press Secretary for the Ohio Department of Transportation.
As entertaining as Dana's tale might be, ODOT says it is a really effective PSA for what it wants families to actually do on eclipse day: "Come early, stay late, find something to do to kind of delay having to leave with everybody else, and that will hopefully spread out that influx of travelers on the roadways," said Bruning.
This year, Norris feels lucky to step into her front yard to view the celestial event.
"I understand not everyone has the luxury of being off work, or their kids have to go to school, but if they don't, take advantage of it because it will be a really special once-in-a-lifetime kind of day," said Norris.
ODOT also suggests packing extra food and water in your car, adding a paper map to your car in case your location services aren't connecting, and making sure you have a full tank of gas before heading out for the day.
