80 Acres Of Lightning Rods?

By: Holly Spangler

Matt Jungmann and his staff had a lightbulb moment a few years ago when high winds took down the stage at the Indiana State Fair and seven people were killed. As the national events director for Penton Ag and manager of the Farm Progress Show — an all-outdoor event that brings tens of thousands of people to a site populated by tents and temporary structures — Jungmann knew they needed a better plan for bad weather.

And while severe weather isn’t as likely in late August or September, it’s not impossible either. In 2011, Jungmann made the call to shut down Husker Harvest Days, a sister show in Nebraska, when sustained winds reached 40 mph and were gusting to 60 mph, threatening tents. In 2014, he closed the Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa, early due to lightening.