LEHMAN, Pa. — The Luzerne County Fair is back with fun for the whole family but this year's fair came with a lot of work to get it up and running.
Last year, severe weather and flooding pummeled the fairgrounds in Lehman Township, forcing the fair to end early and leaving behind significant damage.
Over at Cal's Concession, they're rolling out thousands of fried goodies ahead of the crowds the next several days.
"This is perfect weather, not too hot, not a cloud in the sky. Perfect fair weather," said Loretta Maselkevich.
The vendors are grateful for clear skies after rain pummeled the fairgrounds last year.
"With tents flying through the air and the dark skies, lots of rain coming through in a short time. It was pretty scary," said Maselkevich.
The rain and flooding was so bad that evacuations were put in place and the fairgrounds were left severely damaged.
"We were trying to batten down the hatches and keep everybody safe that we had. They were taking care of the customers and whoever else was coming through the gate," said Mike Jagodzinski of Yogi's Potato Pancakes.
The fair was shut down after just three days, impacting hundreds of vendors, even those shielded from the storms.
"I've never heard of a fair closing before but something was on fire and the rides were floating," said Kathleen Smaley of K&D Creations.
"You're looking for nice weather like this to make money and one day can mess up your whole payroll," said Brian Gardner of Uncle Buck's BBQ.
It's the work behind the scenes that made this year's fair possible. Luzerne County Council approving $500,000 to help rebuild drainage systems and roadways.
"We've always had our emergency plan which worked beautifully last year," said Luzerne County Fair Director Brenda Pugh. "But this year we were able to get the swails at least back open again. Starting to get some of it piped. After the fair, we'll continue to work on it and get it finished."
But with the fixes now in place and sunshine in the forecast, vendors are looking forward to a successful week.
"I'm hoping it'll bring some people good here. They did a lot of remodeling. I think it's great," Gardner said.
The Luzerne County Fair runs through Sunday in the Back Mountain.