Fair looks at barricades for extra security

There’s never a shortage of new attractions at the Steele County Free Fair, and Rick Ellingson hopes this year is no exception.

A member of the SCFF Board of Directors – and the director of safety – is staying true to his roots.

Ellingson is working with Emergency Management Director Kristen Sailer to secure barricades for six entrances to the fairgrounds.

“We’ve been looking for a while, trying to find the right fit for us,” Ellingson said. “We had to have very specific ones, because they couldn’t be permanent, like a cement barricade. If there’s an emergency, we couldn’t move them quick enough” to allow rescue vehicles through.

Sailer is applying for a grant from Homeland Security to pay for the barricades and a trailer to store and haul them, at a total cost of close to $150,000.

“These are very lightweight, compact,” Ellingson said, “but they’ll definitely stop up to a small cargo truck, up to 50 mph.”

Should a vehicle strike the barricade, the bumper will push it backward. That in turn secures the barricade into the ground, “and spikes come up and hit the bottom of your vehicle,” Ellingson said. “It does some serious damage.”

He and Sailer have talked with officials in the region to gauge interest and need in sharing the system.

“I think they could be used very often,” Ellingson said, at events like the Fourth of July celebration in Blooming Prairie and Owatonna’s homecoming or holiday lighted parades.

There are plenty of horror stories about vehicles ramming into parade floats and bystanders, he said.

Fair Manager Scott Kozelka agrees.

“I believe if we have barricades, it deters them from even trying to come in” where they’re not allowed, he said.

There have been issues before, including one that left Ellingson with a broken nose.

During the 2021 SCFF, a man who was driving an SUV on the fairgrounds became angry when Ellingson – who is also a Blooming Prairie Police officer, a Mayo paramedic, and a Medford firefighter – told him he couldn’t enter a road that was closed to the public.

The driver got out of the vehicle and head-butted Ellingson, then fled. He was arrested and charged with assault and is serving a six-year prison term for racketeering in another case.

It’s not about him, though, Ellingson said.

“It’s not ‘if’ (something) will happen, it’s ‘when,’” he said. “And if it does, we’re prepared. If we’re not prepared, I’d sure hate to say, ‘well, we thought about this, but…’”

The barricades may arrive in time for the 2023 SCFF, which runs from Aug. 15-20.

“If the money’s available, they could very well be here,” Ellingson said.

In addition to the barricades, the fair board is looking ahead to another safety feature: A storm shelter.

During inclement weather at the fairgrounds, visitors now use the community building, the Four Seasons Centre, or the cemented area under the grandstands.

A storm shelter, Ellingson said, “is funded by FEMA, because of the importance of them.”

It becomes even more important for people who spend the week, including overnight, on the fairgrounds.