Big Tex went up in flames at the finish of the 2012 State Fair. (File)
DALLAS (November 11, 2012)--State Fair of Texas officials have the technology and they’re making Big Tex stronger, smarter, less flammable and more expensive after the fire that destroyed the icon at the finish to the 2012 fair.
A wiring fault is blamed for a fire that burned Big Tex down to his metal skeleton going into the fair's closing weekend last month.
Now, the fair icon will get a stronger steel frame, a fire suppression system and fire-retardant apparel, fair President Errol McKoy said.
His mouth will still move; so will one of his hands.
The cost of the new and improved Big Tex will range from $250,000 to $600,000, but McKoy says it'll be worthwhile.
"He didn't die. He's going through rehab,” he told the Dallas Morning News.
