However, Atchison Police Chief Mike Wilson, during a visit to this week's Co-Host Monday on 93.7 FM, said the heat of the weekend did cause medical issues, with his officers strategically placed during the festival, which allowed for a fast response from medical services. "You've got to be able to not only have medical staff, EMS, but you've got to be able to maneuver them around," Wilson said. "Fortunately, on Friday night, we only had two medical incidents, and Saturday night had four, all heat related. You know, one of the things that we do with officers...is we place them so that you don't have everybody in one place. We have all these places where they're at. One of the reasons for that is not only just to help people, but it's to recognize or locate or spot activity that needs attention, particularly medical attention, Wilson said, adding, "that happened on Friday and Saturday night. So when people say I'm not feeling good, all of a sudden may go to the ground right there and we can see it. So, we can call EMS to the scene and that's what happened both Friday and Saturday nights. And so those people got medical attention very quickly and everybody came out okay."
The festival began Friday with an evening of live country music from Blackhawk and Lorrie Morgan at the city’s riverfront, followed by a full day of activities Saturday, starting with the annual fun run and ending at the Atchison riverfront with the Concert in the Sky fireworks conclusion.
