Burning Man is already a test of “radical self-sufficiency” for festival goers, but the 2023 edition presented more challenges than most expected.
An unusual hurricane on the West Coast pushed back the commencement of the counter-culture festival. The protestors were then rammed by a tribal park ranger in his patrol truck after blocking the sole route leading to the site in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. (That incident is currently being investigated.)
Heavy rains have been falling on the arid area since Thursday, causing severe flooding. This weekend, festival organizers and local police closed the routes for the duration of the festival, instructing guests to turn around and return home.
More than 70,000 “Burners” at the site have been asked to stay put and conserve supplies amid mud slicks and unserviced toilets.
Police announced an inquiry into an unspecified death at the festival on Sunday, but did not reveal the identity of the dead or whether foul play was suspected.
Here’s what we know about the 2023 Burning Man disaster:
What exactly is Burning Man festival?
The festival is a “temporary metropolis dedicated to community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance”, according to its website.
The six-day festival in the Black Rock Desert culminates in the torching of a 40-foot effigy of “the man” before Labor Day.
The festival was postponed this year owing to flooding induced by Hurricane Hilary. Larry Harvey and Jerry James, co-founders of the event, first burnt an improvised wooden figure at Baker Beach at the Summer Solstice in 1986.
According to the Burning Man website, Harvey called the statue “Burning Man” in 1988 and began publicizing the event to people outside of his network by handing out fliers and designing t-shirts.
More than 10,000 people attended the event by 1997, and the number has only increased over the years.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Burning Man did not take place in 2020 or 2021. This year, over 70,000 people attended the event, which began on August 27 and will conclude on Monday.
Ranger rams into protest about climate change
Last week, climate activists were intimidated by a park warden who allegedly pointed a weapon at them and then rammed his patrol truck through their roadblock on the route leading into Burning Man.
The Pyramid Lake Paiute tribal ranger, whose identity has not been revealed, can be seen exiting his car, drawing his firearm, and yelling for the demonstrators to get down on the ground in the footage. The situation is being looked into.
According to the tribal chairman, James J. Phoenix, the ranger was using his patrol car to clear “debris” from the roadway after climate protestors refused to leave.
According to USA Today, cell phone connectivity in the area is extremely limited. According to the National Weather Service in Reno, Nevada, heavy rains persisted on Sunday.
Mud adventures, and unexpected challenges
The BLM, the federal government organization in charge of the area where Burning Man takes place, has stated that the entrance will remain closed for the duration of the festival.
DJ Diplo, Thomas Wesley Pentz, stated in an Instagram video posted on Saturday that he barely made it out of the Black Rock Desert thanks to a fan who offered him and comedian Chris Rock a ride in the back of his pickup truck.
“I legit walked the side of the road for hours with my thumb out,” Mr. Pentz said, adding that he had to walk six miles through the mud.
“Also shoutout to this guy for making the smart purchase of a truck not knowing it was for this exact moment.”
TikTok videos released by guests showed people walking in the mud while wearing trash bags up to their knees.
“All the activities were shut down, we slept with no house music bumping, everything stopped,” TikTok user Angie Peacock said.
“They shut the water down, I’m walking around helping pull power cables out of the ground so they don’t get stuck in the mud.”
Other attendees enjoyed the mud and even coated themselves in it.
“This is the ultimate filter of beauty,” Dub Kitty told The Reno Gazette-Journal. “We’re trying to find my camp and magic along the way.”
Burning Man 2023: Misinformation about the ‘Ebola outbreak’ is rampant
A screenshot of a text message exchange sparked a social media frenzy about an alleged Ebola outbreak at Burning Man.
People on X, formerly Twitter, spread doctored Forbes headlines and false tweets from Burning Man organizers and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Experts and clinicians stressed the improbability of an Ebola breakout.
A BLM representative told Indy100 that there is no such thing as an Ebola outbreak.
“I can confirm the event entrance was closed for the year because unusual rainfall caused muddy conditions where there was a full stop on vehicles, and not for an ebola outbreak,” the spokesperson said.
A death investigation is underway, and portable toilets are a nightmare.
On Saturday, the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office confirmed a death at Burning Man to KNSD-TV but provided few specifics. The person’s identity, as well as the reason and method of death, have not been revealed.
BreezyScroll contacted the appropriate authorities
Weather conditions stopped cleaning crews from emptying thousands of portable toilets. Except for emergency vehicles, no driving is permitted.
Chris Rock posted an Instagram photo of the muddy roads and a line of portable facilities that had not been cleared.
“Also, from what I understand, because of the flooding, the port-a-potties reportedly can’t be emptied,” Rock wrote. “And because the gates are closed, people can’t get in to fill generators or deliver supplies.”
While many people expressed their displeasure on social media, others maintained a cheerful attitude and continued to dance and drink. Burner Mike Jed told the Associated Press that he and others built a bucket toilet so they wouldn’t have to slog through the mud as much to get to temporary toilets.
“If it really turns into a disaster, well, no one is going to have sympathy for us,” Mr. Jed told the AP. “I mean, it’s Burning Man.”
BreezyScroll contacted the appropriate authorities. Organizers said they didn’t know when the roads would “be dry enough for RVs or vehicles to navigate safely”.
