First aid at the Plymouth County Fair got a whole new look this year.

The aging first aid booth was replaced by a new building just in time for the fair this year.

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"Last year there were concerns about the booth -- it was aging," said Tim Paul, chief engineer at Floyd Valley Hospital.

Aging is right. The booth was built somewhere in the mid-1940s.

That's the estimate from Ruth Peters, of rural Le Mars, who served on the Plymouth County Fair Board for 15 years.

"It's probably one of the original buildings," Peters said.

That booth didn't house first aid for many years, though.

First it was a 4-H doughnut stand, Peters said. Then the fair board used it as the board's office for many years.

"From 1980 to 1990, nurses staffed the Marshall's Office (in Pioneer Village)," Peters said.

Then, in 1997 the first aid staff moved into the former fair board office, which became the first aid booth until this year.

Plans for a new booth began with work by Kari Daale, in Floyd Valley Hospital's education department.

"I started looking for grants, lining up background information, getting the ball rolling," Daale said.

Money for the building included a $31,607 grant from Plymouth County Local Option Sales Tax revenue and a $5,000 grant from the Avera Foundation.

Paul stepped up as the general contractor to design and coordinate construction of the new booth, a joint effort between Floyd Valley Hospital and the fair board. Construction began in June.

"The fair board built the outer shell and the hospital maintenance crew built the inside," Paul said. "A lot of volunteer labor helped keep the cost down."

With a few days to go before the fair begins, all that's left are the final touches.

The booth will be staffed by the hospital, as always, and ready to treat fairgoers who come in with anything from a small cut that needs a band aid to heat exhaustion.

The new stand includes central air conditioning, two treatment rooms and three private areas in the back of the building for mothers and fathers to change diapers or nurse their babies.

"With the new building these rooms are more private and comfortable," Paul said.

Floyd Valley Hospital provides the equipment and all the first aid supplies.

"It's a nice place to get a break out of the heat and get assistance," Paul said. "It's going to be a benefit to all fairgoers."