No chalupa for you, Bethel, Alaska! The town in bush Alaska (pop. 6,000) was reeling at the revelation that a Taco Bell opening was just a cruel, cruel hoax:
It was some unique form of tundra humor at work, apparently, that led to the fliers posted on various local bulletin boards, promising an opening in time for Bethel’s annual Independence Day parade and offering employment.
“We got excited, because we don’t have any fast food chains out here, and the idea of Taco Bell coming in? And they were going to be here for the 4thof July?” Chamber of Commerce director Bonnie Bradbury said in an interview.
“You bring a McDonald’s or a KFC, people will go crazy out here,” said Tatiana Dotdot, who works at the local AC store, the rambling supermarket that sells everything from diapers to all-terrain vehicles, as long as it can be brought in on a barge or a plane.