A partial eclipse of the roads

THE RUN-IN to the eclipse began yesterday in traditional British style - slow-moving traffic on the M5 and A30, the main thoroughfares into Cornwall. It felt like a bank holiday weekend, with the usual damp and overcast weather.

But the forecast is good, with eclipse co-ordinators in Devon and Cornwall predicting a 70 per cent chance of a clear day on Wednesday.

The AA has already been reporting a "pretty horrific" build-up of traffic trying to enter Cornwall, the best place in Britain to witness the event.

Yet Steve Watson, emergency planning officer for Cornwall, was looking on the bright side. "We want to say a big thank you to all those people who travelled through the night," he said. "The extra traffic for the eclipse has effectively come overnight, meaning the daytime delays will be no worse than any Saturday and Sunday in August."

Doctors yesterday repeated their warnings that the eclipse must not be viewed directly with the naked eye - not even through special eclipse glasses. A pinhole projection viewer has been recommended by eye experts, though Professor Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer, said the safest way to watch the eclipse was "on the television".

The far west of Cornwall is booked up, though there are still B&Bs and hotels with space on the south coast around Looe, inland at Liskeard and at Newquay, in the north. Some hotels, particularly in Newquay, are charging families of four up to pounds 3,000 for the week.

An ex-army man, Gage Williams, is Cornwall's official eclipse co-ordinator. Working with the police, ambulance services, fire crews and local services, he has put in place plans for minimising traffic delays and ensuring water supplies do not run dry. Hospitals have cancelled leave and are expecting a boom in babies born in the next week or so - women go into labour earlier on holiday because they have changed their routine.

All that is left is for the sun to join in the spirit of the event. It has been sunny on 11 August every year since 1993, which probably means it will be cloudy on Wednesday.

BLAKE MORRISON, PAGE 27