Tomi Cutlip got off to a bit of a slow start for her first Easter egg hunt.

The 19-month-old simply pointed at the plastic purple orb on the wet ground.

“Egg!” she said.

With the coaching of mom Ambria Freeman, Tomi soon got the gist of the event and began to fill her Eeyore basket with the colored eggs.

Other children, more seasoned to the concept, ran full-force in the field of eggs, scrambling to collect as many as possible.

Tuesday marked Ironton’s annual egg hunt sponsored by the Ironton Business Association, Ironton Fire Department and city health department.

Despite the downpour less than an hour before the event was scheduled to start, children and parents showed up to the soccer field beside Liebert, baskets in hand.

Aaron Collins, firefighter, said the station got at least 20 calls from parents wondering if the hunt would go on as planned.

“It’s extremely enjoyable to see the smiles on the children’s faces,” Collins said. “As chilly as it is, they are still having fun.”

This year, about 1,500 eggs were strewn across the soccer field, some filled with candy, some marked with a special prize.

Laura Brown from the health department said thanks to donations from businesses and people from the community, they were able to buy 90 Easter baskets to give away as special prizes. That’s about 25 more than last year.

Representatives from the Lawrence County Early Childhood Academy were also on hand to give out toothbrushes and animal crackers.

Of course an Easter egg hunt wouldn’t be complete without a visit from the Easter Bunny.

The bunny arrived in style in an Ironton fire truck and greeted the children with candy and milkshake coupons donated by Rax.

“I really love it,” the bunny said. “It’s just fun to see all the kids running for the eggs.”

The bunny also posed for photos with the children.

“They are not as afraid of the Easter Bunny and they are Santa,” the bunny said.