Crowds, Weather, And Teamwork Make For Smooth Carnival Weekend
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
With a record crowd watching and cooler evening air setting the stage, Watermelon Queen Mya Harden releases a 100-pound melon from high above Main Street during Friday night’s Watermelon Drop. The dramatic smash from was a highlight of what many called the most beautiful and well-attended Watermelon Carnival in memory — perfect weather, record turnout, and small-town hospitality at its finest. – Photo by Jessie Gurner
WATER VALLEY – You know it was a good carnival when the police chief is happy.
“It was the smoothest running Watermelon Carnival that I have been a part of,” Police Chief Jason
Mangrum said after the weekend whirlwind. “In years past, my phone would blow up Wednesday through Saturday night.”
This year? Crickets. And not the stressful kind—the peaceful, warm-summer-night kind.
First time entrant Tom Hill was the winner in the largest watermelon winner. Hill’s melon weighed 162.1 pounds.
Chief Mangrum gave credit where credit was due: You. The lemonade-sipping, booth-hopping, funnel-cake-eating crowds. Other than one teenage squabble on Friday night, the entire weekend rolled along smoother than the Carnival trolley.
“We are still investigating to see who all was involved,” Mangrum said of the Friday night disturbance which consisted of about 50 people.
And the rest? Just a handful of minor mishaps: a few lost kids and some fender benders in the packed parking lots. “Five lost children, all who were reunited very quickly. I think the longest one was six minutes. It happens,” Mangrum said, like someone who’s seen far worse and knows a good weekend when he sees it.
He also estimated the crowd was the largest he’s seen in his career. “The whole town was busier on Saturday than in carnivals past,” he said, noting how folks stuck around late into the afternoon.
Mangrum praised the behind-the-scenes heroes too. “I give the street department all the credit, they started a couple of weeks before the weekend and in earnest Monday before. Those guys did a great job,” he said.
But the real star? Mother Nature.
“It was a beautiful weekend, I just wish every carnival could be like this one,” the chief added, with the experience of a carnival veteran who understands what a blessing low humidity and a breeze can be.
Finally, Mangrum extended sincere thanks to the Yalobusha County Sheriff’s Department for sending extra deputies to help with security. It takes a team to make a town feel that safe.
“All in all, when the police chief uses the word “smooth,” and he’s not talking about jazz or peanut butter? That’s when you know the Watermelon Carnival hit it out of the park.
