Storms cancel NJ balloon festival, Monmouth County Fair

Organizers of the 34th Annual QuickCheck New Jersey Festival of Ballooning had to cancel the balloon launch and end the event early Sunday as storms passed through the state.

The Monmouth County Fair was also forced to close Sunday afternoon due to inclement weather.

Both the fair and balloon festival attempted to open Sunday, but rain soaked grounds and passing storms forced organizers to end the festivities by mid-day. The closures were announced on Facebook pages for the events.

"Unfortunately, due to incoming weather, the ‪#‎MonmouthCountyFair‬ will close at 1:30 p.m. today," Monmouth County Fair organizers announced on Facebook around 1 p.m.

New Jersey Festival of Ballooning organizers announced just after 6 a.m. on Twitter and Facebook that the morning balloon launch and 5K scheduled for Sunday had been cancelled. But the festival was expected to go on throughout the day with vendors and performances by Foghat and John Kay & Steppenwolf. Several attendees complained on Facebook of a lack of open vendors and muddy conditions. Organizers announced at 11:05 a.m. that they were ending he event early.

"Due to the conditions at the Festival site at Solberg Airport and area road conditions due to the severe weather over the past 3 days, the QuickChek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning closed at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday and concluded its 2016 Festival," they said in a Facebook post.

The cancellations come in the wake of a deadly hot air balloon crash that killed several people in Texas Saturday morning. QuickCheck NJ Festival Ballooning officials have said safety is a top priority this weekend.

Hard copy, unused general admission tickets will be valid for admission into the 2017 balloon festival, organizers said. VIP non-concert ticket holders and those with unredeemed general admission tickets ordered online and printed at home are being asked to contact the festival for replacement tickets.

Runners who registered for the 5K race should be receiving an email in the next week from race organizers, according to a Facebook post on the Quick Check NJ Festival of Ballooning page.