Burning Man Ravers Begin Exodus After Flooding Left Tens Of Thousands Stranded In Nevada Desert
(AP) — BLACK ROCK DESERT, Nev. Muddy roadways inundated by a summer storm that stranded tens of thousands of Burning Man counterculture festival attendees for days had dried up enough by Monday afternoon to let them begin their evacuation from the northern Nevada desert.
Event organizers claimed they began allowing traffic to exit the main road around 2 p.m. local time, although continuing to urge attendees to delay their departure to assist in easing traffic on Monday. Organizers projected a five-hour wait period approximately two hours after the mass departure began.
Organizers also requested that guests refrain from walking out of the Black Rock Desert, located approximately 110 miles (177 kilometers) north of Reno, as others had done throughout the weekend, including star DJ Diplo and comedian Chris Rock. They didn’t say why.
After more than a half-inch (1.3 centimeters) of rain poured Friday, triggering flooding and foot-deep mud, the festival was closed to automobiles.
The road closures occurred just as the first two ceremonial flames signaled that the festival’s finale would commence Saturday night. Normally, the celebration concludes with the burning of a big wooden effigy shaped like a man and a wood temple structure during the final two nights, but the burns were postponed as authorities sought to reopen escape routes before the conclusion of Labour Day weekend.
Weather allowing, “the Man” will be burned at 9 p.m. Monday, while the temple will be burned at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
According to the National Weather Service in Reno, the festival location should remain generally clear and dry on Monday, with some light rain showers possible into Tuesday morning. The event started on August 27 and was supposed to end on Monday morning, with attendees packing and tidying up after themselves.
“We’re a little muddy and dirty, but spirits are high.” “The party is still going on,” said Scott London, a photographer from Southern California, adding that the travel restrictions provided “a view of Burning Man that a lot of us don’t get to see.”
The yearly event, which began on a San Francisco beach in 1986, draws roughly 80,000 artists, musicians, and activists for a weekend of wilderness camping and avant-garde performances. Disruptions have occurred: dust storms forced organizers to briefly close festival doors in 2018, and the event was canceled twice during the pandemic.
At least one death has been reported, but organizers said the weather did not cause the death of a man in his 40s. The sheriff of neighboring Pershing County said he was investigating but had not recognized the guy or determined the cause of death.
President Joe Biden told reporters in Delaware on Sunday that the White House was in contact with local authorities and was aware of the situation at Burning Man, including the death.
On the best of days, the event is distant and emphasizes self-sufficiency. Amid the flooding, revelers were instructed to save food and water, and the majority remained hunkered down at the venue.
On the other hand, some guests could walk several miles to the next town or hitch a ride there.
On Saturday evening, Diplo, real name Thomas Wesley Pentz, shared a video to Instagram of him and Rock riding in the back of a fan’s pickup truck. He claimed they had walked six miles through the mud before hopping in the car.
“I legit walked the side of the road for hours with my thumb out,” Diplo explained.
According to Bishop, Cindy Bishop and three friends could drive their leased RV out of the event early Monday because the main road was not monitored.
She said they were relieved to get out after driving towards the exit — and being stopped multiple times — for two days.
Bishop, who traveled from Boston for her second Burning Man, said the festival’s spirits were still strong when they departed. Most of those she spoke with claimed they intended to stay for the ceremonial fires.
“The spirit in there,” she explained, “was really like, ‘We’re going to take care of each other and make the best of it.'”
Rebecca Barger, a photographer from Philadelphia, arrived at her first Burning Man on August 26 to stay until the end.
“Everyone has just adapted, sharing RVs for sleeping, offering food and coffee,” added Barger. “I danced for hours in foot-deep clay to incredible DJs.”
SOURCE – (AP)
