By Paul Thompson

Northeast News

The sky darkened earlier than anticipated on Monday, August 21, as a torrential downpour struck Kansas City in the hours preceding the highly anticipated total solar eclipse.

Disaster was averted, however, as the sun re-emerged from cloud cover just before noon – gracing the Kansas City metropolitan area with an unrivaled view of a celestial spectacle roughly a century in the making.

How’s that for a Monday afternoon?

Schools were shut down, highways were packed and people from all over the region gathered together along the path of totality to revel in the awesome display.

At Scuola Vita Nuova, children poured out of their classrooms to huddle together on the parking lot. At the historic Indian Mound, area residents gathered on top of the mound to view the eclipse, and listened to the celestial vibes of the Historic Northeast’s own art rock band, The Philistines, following the totality. At lookout points throughout Kansas City, large crowds stood in awe as the moon, however briefly, blotted out the sun.

Once the solar eclipse did occur, thousands of people throughout the region were treated with an awe-inspiring display; a scene that those who witnessed it will describe to their children and their children’s children, so long as they can summon the words to match the moment. Some were more successful than others.

“Whoa!” said Clarke Wyatt, who viewed the eclipse from Indian Mound.

“It was magical – it’s something you see in a NOVA special, but here we all got to experience it for just that little bit of time,” added Wyatt’s significant other, Betse Ellis. “The image is going to stay in my mind.”

Wyatt’s parents drove up from Dallas, Texas to enjoy the eclipse with family in the path of totality.

“You know what was fun is that we had stopped all along the way to see if we could find glasses to watch this,” said Clarke’s father, Chris Wyatt.
“They were all gone, everywhere. We got up here, and halfway up the hill he heard, ‘Oh, do you want glasses?’ So we got to see it!”

Chris and his wife Cherie were able to view the eclipse thanks to Indian Mound Neighborhood Association Vice President, who brought extra glasses from Representative Emanuel Cleaver’s office.

“One of the reasons why I took lunch and came here at Indian Mound is because I anticipated community…I wanted to come and be in the community, and that’s exactly what I found here; neighbors and friends and a band,” Abarca said. “This is what the Northeast is all about.”

Back Door Pottery owner Rebecca Koop also joined the attendees on top of Indian Mound.

“I’m just glad I was alive to see it; it was pretty cool, those few seconds of totality,” said Koop. “I think it met all my expectations – I got to see the little golden ring around the sun.”

Check out the back page of this week’s edition of the Northeast News for more photos and reactions from Northeast residents who viewed Monday’s solar eclipse.