Chippewa Valley Music Festival organizers are changing camping policies after a woman died in her tent of carbon monoxide poisoning at Country Fest this year.

Rock Fest starts on July 19. It's held on the same site near Cadott where Country Fest takes place. Now Rock Fest visitors can choose to stay in a tent-only area, away from campers and recreational vehicles. Country Fest planners started talking about making changes shortly after 21-year-old Tara Grant died.

"Last week, I talked to Tara grant's family, her parents and her sister, and they said that she was the kind of person that would really want something to be done about this," says Jim Buetow, a Country and Rock Fest organizer.

Investigators say a generator hose from an RV filled Tara’s tent with carbon monoxide as she slept. Now her family wants RV’s and campers kept away from tents- Country Fest agrees.

"We designated one whole row of campsites for tents only where we won't have any cars or generators at all," Buetow says.

That row has room for about 70 tents, but Buetow says they will make room for everyone who wants to camp there. He says Country and Rock Fest organizers also want to make sure everyone who comes to enjoy the music knows how deadly carbon monoxide can be.

"We'll probably end up passing something out at the gate to every camper so that they see the information too," he adds.

In Eau Claire County, Country Jam starts July 19 as well.

"We have already contacted Country Jam staff- we've had conversations with them about tents and RV's that might be parked close to each other," says Richard Thoune, with the Eau Claire City-County Health Department.

Health department inspectors will be on the Country Jam grounds every day, making sure everyone stays safe.

"We do have the ability if we see something that's out of order or represents immediate danger to health and safety, we can issue an order requiring immediate correction and we would not hesitate to do that," Thoune says.

Country Fest may eventually force RV’s and campers to park in a separate area away from tents. Organizers are still thinking that option over. Tara Grant's family has set up a memorial scholarship fund in her name at River Falls High School. Country Fest took donations during the event and also made a contribution. If you want to contribute, checks may be sent directly to the family:
Lisa & Gordon Grant
W1000 Silver Fox Drive
Spring Valley, WI 54767

CLICK HERE to see Tara Grant’s memorial Web site.
CLICK HERE to read the camping policy changes at Country and Rock Fest.