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GARY, INDIANA — Mayor Eddie Melton has announced the cancellation of the 2026 Gary Air Show following the catastrophic severe weather event that struck Gary and communities throughout the region on Tuesday, August 11.
The City of Gary experienced wind speeds reaching 99 mph, the strongest winds reported in the region during the catastrophic storm. The severe weather caused extensive damage across the city, including downed trees and power lines, damaged and destroyed homes, vehicles and other property, widespread power outages, flooding, and significant damage to City infrastructure.
Due to the unprecedented level of damage and the extensive recovery efforts currently underway, Mayor Melton has made the difficult decision to cancel this year's Gary Air Show.
“This was not an easy decision,” said Mayor Eddie Melton. “The Gary Air Show is a remarkable event that residents and visitors throughout the region have enjoyed for many years. However, our responsibility right now is to focus every available resource on helping our residents, restoring our neighborhoods and returning Gary to normalcy as quickly as possible. Given the magnitude of this disaster, it would not be responsible to extend our resources toward an event when our community needs them most.”
NIPSCO continues to work around the clock to restore power to more than 185,000 customers still impacted by the storm. Extensive tree damage resulted in thousands of downed power lines and contributed to the destruction of homes, vehicles and other property.
City employees, public safety personnel, general services crews, and hundreds of volunteers have been working continuously since Tuesday to assess damage, clear debris, make repairs, and provide residents with essential resources, including food, medication and other basic necessities.
The scope of the damage is significant, and recovery and cleanup efforts are expected to continue for several weeks. Mayor Melton made the decision following extensive discussions with members of the Gary Common Council and Gary Public Safety leadership.
Public safety was also a critical consideration in the decision to cancel the event. The City relies heavily on mutual aid from neighboring communities to supplement emergency response personnel, and those resources are currently stretched to their limits as communities throughout the region respond to the storm as call volumes have doubled since Tuesday.
The Department of Homeland Security is expected to be in Gary during the week of August 17 to assess the extent of the storm damage and assist with the ongoing recovery effort.
“I want to personally thank our public safety personnel, general services employees, City workers, and the hundreds of volunteers who have worked tirelessly since this storm hit,” Mayor Melton said. “Many of these individuals are making extraordinary sacrifices while dealing with power outages and damage to their own homes and families. Their dedication to Gary and their neighbors has not gone unnoticed, and we are extremely grateful.”
Mayor Melton also expressed appreciation to the Gary Air Show's supporters and sponsors for their continued commitment to the City.
“We hope our supporters and sponsors understand that this decision is about putting our community first. The air show will always be an important part of Gary, but right now our priority is the safety and well-being of our residents and restoring our city.”
The City of Gary asks residents to remain patient and vigilant as recovery efforts continue.
The City thanks residents for their patience and cooperation as Gary works with regional, state and federal partners to recover from this unprecedented storm.
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