Waking up to cloudy skies or noticing how the wind whips the branches of trees can be discouraging for anyone at any time of year. However, for exhibitors at the Madrid Book Fair this situation can … be lethal. Especially if they receive notification that an orange alert will be activated in the next few hours. Faced with this impotent situation, booksellers can only “hold on and wait”, since this is the risk they must take as the Buen Retiro Gardens are the privileged setting for this annual event that brings thousands of people closer to writers, bookstores and publishers. .
On up to three occasions, the 83rd edition of the fair has been surprised by an orange alert due to adverse weather conditions – which, although allowing traffic in the Retiro Park, forces the booths to close. However, on two of these days the notice was reviewed and it was finally possible to continue.
This situation is not unknown to the exhibitors who, since May 31 and until this Sunday, have spent mornings and afternoons in the lungs of Madrid. «In the face of closure we can only suffer. You’ve been organizing this for a month and then everything gets messed up in a moment,” laments Daniel. Their main allies against the rain are awnings, but in the face of the wind they have no choice but to surrender.
“Although they are necessary and safety is above all, they greatly disrupt the publishers’ plans,” Almuzara Libros told ABC about the procedures carried out in the event of adverse weather conditions. Behind the 17 days of the fair there is a lot of work and a notice of this type can imply the suspension of signature planning “On which we have been working well in advance, agreeing on the ideal date between authors and publishers, making posters, involving the networks and media and planning the logistics of supplying copies to the booths,” they detail.
Reorganizing everything that has been canceled is also a frustrating job for exhibitors, especially when it comes to the signatures and it also coincides with the fact that they do not reside in Madrid. “It is very frustrating for an author, especially if it is their first time, not being able to fulfill the dream of being at the Book Fair signing copies with many other consecrated authors,” the aforementioned publisher points out.
However, the changes in planning are not what bothers Daniel the most: “The worst thing is that they give you the notice at 11 in the morning and at 4 p.m. they tell you that it can now be opened because they have lowered the level of the alert. It would be nice if they were a little more precise », he determines.
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Something similar to what the bookseller from the Paulinas booth tells this newspaper, what happened last Friday. In the early afternoon, the organization informed exhibitors and visitors that the orange notice would force all planned activities to be cancelled. “We will open from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and we will close at that time,” determined the Book Fair through its X account (formerly Twitter). That same day ‘The Illuminated Night’ would take place, a day in which a large influx was expected and in which the booths would register movement until 11:30 p.m. However, as the moment approached, the forecast changed and the activity was carried out as planned.
This was possible thanks to the procedures that are followed on the days when the fair takes place. “We receive reports so we know what to expect each day,” Eva Orúe, director of the Madrid Book Fair, told this newspaper. Thus, in the event that an orange alert is declared, periodic reviews would be carried out until the time for activation arrives. This allows them to keep up-to-date monitoring of the situation, and it can be improved if time permits. “Bringing the fair to Retiro implies that we have to accept the rules and the management, organization and exhibitors are aware of that,” adds Orúe.
Falling branches and trees
The privileged location of these booths encourages families to get closer to books, publishers and authors, encouraging and encouraging the little ones to get closer to the world of literature. But this also entails special attention to the security measures applied in this public space.
The protocol that Retiro Park follows in the event of a meteorological emergency establishes four alert levels (green, yellow, orange and red), which are activated based on the forecasts provided by the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet). The variables to determine the color evaluate the intensity of snowfall or the wind gust speedFor example.
In this last point, gales, which affect the Book Fair, are taken into account if the maximum temperature forecast exceeds 35 ºC, since it affects the branches, which can break – a phenomenon known as ‘summer branch’. drop’—, and soil moisture, which also multiplies the chances of trees falling.
