FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. (FOX 9) - Families attending the Minnesota State Fair this weekend will need to navigate crowds topping 100-thousand people and may want to take extra steps to help keep track of their children.
What you can do:
Parents can pick up wristbands from information booths to write their name and phone numbers so police or fair staff can quickly make contact if a child is separated from their family.
State Fair Police Chief Ron Knafla said parents can also take family pictures before they go to the fair so they can quickly share descriptions of what their children are wearing.
By the numbers:
Nearly 200 officers from agencies across the state patrol the fairgrounds over the 12 days of the fair.
Finding enough officers to patrol the fair has been a challenge in recent years.
Chief Knafla said this year they will have officers from the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office, Department of Natural Resources and federal partners.
"It's a big conglomeration of agencies that help make this happen," Knafla told FOX 9 on the first day of the fair.
But Knafla urges parents to take those extra steps to make sure they can help those officers find a child if they become lost or separated.
"I'm happy to say we've never actually lost (a child) that never got reunited."