ST. LOUIS — Thousands are downtown for PrideFest. Eight blocks of prime St. Louis real estate are packed with food booths, shopping, concert stages and even an inflatable playground.
The task of keeping the usual 300,000 pride-goers safe falls on the shoulders of organizers and first responders.
"Well first lets address the weather," Jordan Braxton with Pride STL tells 5 On Your Side. "We know it's hot, so we have watering stations that have come. We have open and tapped fountains for people to drink out of. The fire department is going to come and bring the big mister."
Even Metro is helping out by running air conditioning on one of their electric busses all weekend.
With violence a prevalent issue in St. Louis, Pride organizers have worked on multiple safety measures for this year's event.
"As a resident, I live downtown," Braxton tells 5 On Your Side. "I am aware of goings on, and you just have to be aware of your surroundings, if you see something, say something."
There's plenty of security to say something to too.
Pride organizers are coordinating with local and federal law enforcement to provide a safe festival environment.
"We have everything covered, we are ready for anything that could possibly happen. So we just want people to come and remember that this is a safe space, not only for diversity and inclusion, but for a safe space to come to get away from all the hateful rhetoric in the outside world," Braxton said.