NV - Thousands stranded at Burning Man festival, rain and mud, roads closed, shelter in place, Black Rock Desert, 1 death, 2 Sept 2023

[imstilla.grandma]

Thousands of people remain stranded at the event after the bad weather turned the ground to deep, slippery mud.

Revellers have been told to shelter in place and conserve their food, while roads in and out of the event are closed as vehicles can barely move.

Burning Man is held in the Black Rock Desert, which is usually dry and dusty.

In a statement on Saturday, the Pershing County Sheriff's Office said it is "currently investigating a death which occurred during this rain event" but did not give any further details on the circumstances. The person's family had been notified, the statement added.

The unusual rainstorms came towards the end of the nine day festival, when the biggest crowds arrive to see the grand finale - the burning of the giant wooden man.

More showers are expected and authorities have said that it could be several days before the ground dries up enough for people to leave.

For this reason, they have been told to conserve their food, water and fuel.

The festival's toilets are also out of use, revellers say, because the service vehicles cannot drive on the mud to empty them.

Festival-goers told the BBC they watched on as some people tried to drive away - but they quickly became bogged in the thick clay-like mud.

More than 70,000 people had arrived at the site before it was closed on Saturday but the exact number of those still there is unclear.

Some have managed to leave the site, however. American DJ Diplo wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that he and comedian Chris Rock walked 5miles (8km) to a road, where they were given a lift by fans.

Burning Man: Police investigating death during heavy rain

Thousands of people remain stuck at the event in Nevada and could remain so for several more days.

www.bbc.com

Burning Man attendee Josh Lease climbed on top of his camp's trailer to take a photo of the rainbow that emerged after heavy rains brought muddy grounds at the Black Rock City playa on Saturday

n an update on X (formerly Twitter), the Burning Man Organization said access into and out of the site is closed for the remainder of the event. Only emergency vehicles are being allowed to pass, the organization said in a statement.

https://www.npr.org/2023/09/02/1197441202/burning-man-festival-rains-floods-stranded-nevada

 

[mickey2942]

An article I read was "guilt tripping" people with RV's, encouraging them to invite tent campers into their RV.

People were prepared for normal weather, sunny, and warm. Not low 50's at night, and monsoon rain.

Anyone who has a tow truck is probably going to be busy for weeks after this. Sounds like vehicles there are stuck in three or four inches of clay like mud.

 

[ifindedout]

This is the first time it has rained at the festival. Sadly, one person has died (not the first time, fortunately not common).

Death at Burning Man investigated as rain-soaked festival asks attendees to shelter in place

Movement into Black Rock City has been halted and the airport is closed, according to organizers. No additional information was provided about the death.

www.nbcnews.com

A death was under investigation at the Burning Man festival amid the rain and mud, local authorities said Saturday, and attendees were urged to shelter in place as the event was all but shut down.

The Pershing County Sheriff's Office in northern Nevada announced the death, which it said happened "during this rain event." The sheriff's office offered few details, including the person's identity or the apparent cause.

"As this death is still under investigation, there is no further information available at this time," the office said in a statement.

The party appeared to be all but over, and organizers said they were focused on getting people out of the area safely.

"Most Festival operations have been halted or significantly delayed," the sheriff's office said.

The sheriff's agency, which previously said people were free to leave the festival amid a lockdown for vehicles coming in, said Saturday night that it supports organizers' shelter-in-place recommendation for the more than 70,000 estimated to be at the desert event.

Burning Man - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Howl]

Do these people not watch weather reports? The festival is located in a playa, an undrained desert basin that becomes a shallow lake with sufficient rainfall.

The organizers did carefully locate the festival area in a very slightly elevated portion of the playa, so it isn't as bad as it could be.

Still, some rain headed to northwest Nevada around noon today (Sunday), but could be hit or miss for Black Rock City.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Burning Man flooding strands tens of thousands at Nevada site; authorities are investigating 1 death

Tens of thousands of people gathered for the Burning Man festival remain have been stranded in the Nevada desert after storms that swept through the area.

apnews.com

On their website, organizers encouraged participants to remain calm and suggest that the festival is built to endure conditions like the flooding. They said cellphone trailers were being dropped in several locations Saturday night and that they would be briefly opening up internet overnight. Shuttle buses were also being organized to take attendees to Reno from the nearest town of Gerlach, a walk of about five miles (eight kilometers) from the site.

Celebrity DJ Diplo posted a video to Instagram on Saturday evening showing him and comedian Chris Rock riding in the back of a fan’s pickup truck. He said they had walked six miles through the mud before hitching a ride.

 

[mickey2942]

Sounds absolutely dystopian, 5 miles from the paved road? No food, no water, mud everywhere. I believe that the playa used to be a lake bed. So, of course it would fill up when it rains.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Sounds like a modern-day Woodstock (from link above):


Those who remained Sunday described a resilient community making the most of the muddy conditions that have made it difficult to walk or even bike around Burning Man. Many posted selfies of themselves covered in mud, dancing or splashing in the makeshift lakes.

“Honestly, we’re having a great time,” Theresa Galeani, who is at Burning Man and expected to be there for the rest of the week.

 

[10ofRods]

It is not the first time it rained at BM. It rained in 1996 and 1998 (pretty good amount) and in 2014, at least. Apparently the rain in 2014 was historic and part of the pattern we're seeing now. The rain in 2014 was much heavier than in the 1990's.

It may be the most number of generators on the Playa during a rain, though.

IMO.

 

[10ofRods]

Do these people not watch weather reports? The festival is located in a playa, an undrained desert basin that becomes a shallow lake with sufficient rainfall.

The organizers did carefully locate the festival area in a very slightly elevated portion of the playa, so it isn't as bad as it could be.

Still, some rain headed to northwest Nevada around noon today (Sunday), but could be hit or miss for Black Rock City.

Forecast has been changing - when the moisture comes in from the West (normal) the mountains channel it north of Black Rock. The rain yesterday and the day before came in from the South.

But now, there's a pretty good second system coming in from the South - winds have changed since last night (last night's rain was really just sprinkles). Looks like they could get another couple of inches today (soon!)

I think this is an okay link:

(Live feed from the Playa; official feed).

I think most Burners are there for it, regardless of the weather. It's part of the point of the experience (to be in extreme conditions and have to form communities to deal with it). And, well, it's not that far to walk out to the road (the problem is leaving things behind, which is not part of the rules or ethics of BM). Many of the people saying they walked out are also saying they plan to return to get their stuff at the end of the week. But the entrance to Black Rock has been closed by BLM officials, not by BMOrg.

Bad weather forces closure of entrance to Burning Man

“Participants inbound for the event should turn around and head home,” the statement from the Bureau of Land Managment said.

www.kolotv.com

BMOrg is advising "shelter in place," but no one is prevented from walking out. They're even running shuttles to Gerlach from the point where the paved road begins, and have arranged buses to Reno from Gerlach for those desiring to fly home.

The time needed to clean up after this event will be longer than usual, I expect.

IMO.

 

[10ofRods]

Sounds absolutely dystopian, 5 miles from the paved road? No food, no water, mud everywhere. I believe that the playa used to be a lake bed. So, of course it would fill up when it rains.

5 miles from a paved road is where I spend most of my vacation time (at least that distance). And at Burning Man, there is way too much food - since everyone is told they are on their own, by the last couple of days, people are eager to get rid their surplus. Many, many people bring surplus food and water to share.

I prefer less social camping now that I'm older, but being miles from a paved road is a goal for many of us (and there are many like-minded people who enjoy wilderness stays).

The Playa was a lake bed thousands of years ago - like Death Valley. People do go to both places and people camp in both places. I don't go to DV or Nevada Desert in August or September, but I used to.

The mud issue is going to return today, but in a couple of days, it'll be dry again (hopefully people can get their golf carts and cars out - that's going to be an issue).

The mountains that make La Playa into a lake bed formed 6 million years ago.

https://data.nbmg.unr.edu/Public/Geothermal/SiteDescriptions/BlackRockDesert.pdf

 

[La Louve]

Having RV camped at Burning Man for three years (2011-2013) I know I would be prepared for this and I think most Burners will be too. I always had plenty of food, and lots of extra water. Ice for the coolers could be an issue and I read last night they were rationing ice sales. Tent camping would be much harder though.

I learned after my first Burn not to use my RV toilet any more than absolutely necessary. I had to have my black water tank pumped out about midway through the week. My second and third years I made it all week without needing the pump truck. But those trucks aren't getting in right now, for Porta potties and RVs.

It's definitely the communal spirit that gets you through the wind storms, the rain and the heat; really the whole event. Helping your neighbors out and your neighbors helping you out. Like when you lose your corkscrew. Or you gift that extra bottle of hot sauce to the neighbors. Or you need ice and someone comes back from Artica with ice for the whole camp.

I'm confident most Burners are managing well and helping each other out while they wait. There's still a Man and Temple to burn tonight if the weather cooperates.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

As @10ofRods said, it's definitely not the first time it has rained on the Burners. They have been delayed/prohibited from driving plenty of times, but mostly just for a few hours or overnight. This time, though, it looks like it might be days before those without 4WD and good tires are able to/allowed to leave. They stopped all vehicle movement mid-afternoon Friday, so it's already been "days", actually.

(that said, I saw some burners parked at a restaurant in my town this morning, about 100 miles away from the playa, and based on the mud on their bicycle tires, they were on playa for the rain -- so they must've managed to get out. I didn't register as I drove past whether they had 4wd but they most likely did).

But -- they didn't burn the Man last night as usual, and I wonder if it might be the first time the actual burn has been delayed?

I read an update that the Man burn is planned for tonight, but weather depending, and more rain today is very possible, which would only push reopening (and burn delays) back farther. In fact I just glanced at the livestream linked above, and it looks to me like it might be raining again there now.

 

[La Louve]

As @10ofRods said, it's definitely not the first time it has rained on the Burners. They have been delayed/prohibited from driving plenty of times, but mostly just for a few hours or overnight. This time, though, it looks like it might be days before those without 4WD and good tires are able to/allowed to leave. They stopped all vehicle movement mid-afternoon Friday, so it's already been "days", actually.

(that said, I saw some burners parked at a restaurant in my town this morning, about 100 miles away from the playa, and based on the mud on their bicycle tires, they were on playa for the rain -- so they must've managed to get out. I didn't register as I drove past whether they had 4wd but they most likely did).

But -- they didn't burn the Man last night as usual, and I wonder if it might be the first time the actual burn has been delayed?

I read an update that the Man burn is planned for tonight, but weather depending, and more rain today is very possible, which would only push reopening (and burn delays) back farther. In fact I just glanced at the livestream linked above, and it looks to me like it might be raining again there now.

It might be the first time the Man burn has been delayed but I do know there was one year before my time when the Man was burned early by someone taking radical self-expression too far and deciding to light the man on fire mid week.

 

[10ofRods]

As @10ofRods said, it's definitely not the first time it has rained on the Burners. They have been delayed/prohibited from driving plenty of times, but mostly just for a few hours or overnight. This time, though, it looks like it might be days before those without 4WD and good tires are able to/allowed to leave. They stopped all vehicle movement mid-afternoon Friday, so it's already been "days", actually.

(that said, I saw some burners parked at a restaurant in my town this morning, about 100 miles away from the playa, and based on the mud on their bicycle tires, they were on playa for the rain -- so they must've managed to get out. I didn't register as I drove past whether they had 4wd but they most likely did).

But -- they didn't burn the Man last night as usual, and I wonder if it might be the first time the actual burn has been delayed?

I read an update that the Man burn is planned for tonight, but weather depending, and more rain today is very possible, which would only push reopening (and burn delays) back farther. In fact I just glanced at the livestream linked above, and it looks to me like it might be raining again there now.

BMOrg cannot prevent people from leaving or trying to leave. They are not police. They are strongly advising people to shelter in place - but many people are leaving anyway.

BLM has closed the entrance but has not prohibited exiting. I've been watching youtube all day - Gate Road is still closed, too muddy, but there's another route that is being used by RV's (many) and cars with higher carriage, whether 4WD or not. Very few people left.

It's not the first time the burn has been delayed, I don't think - and initially they said they were canceling it this year, but the official news bulletin of 2 hours ago says it's on again - 9:30 tonight. It's pretty dry out where the Man actually is. The attempts of people to move their vehicles have made the main camp area much more soggy.

At any rate, people continue to leave, and Burning Man continues to operate. BLM is assisting people at various points along the exit road, and so is BMOrg, actually (now running shuttles). I've been surprised at the number of Burners who have walkie talkies or satellite phones (should have expected it).

The rain seems to have come in (per the radar) but may not be very strong by the time it hits the Playa (we often have rain in the upper layers here in California that will deposit moisture on higher altitudes, but be virga by the time it gets to the ground).

Can't wait to see what happens!

(Latest update from someone on the Playa says they think the rain is arriving in about 20 minutes - at 3 pm PST).

 

[Auntie Cipation]

BMOrg cannot prevent people from leaving or trying to leave. They are not police. They are strongly advising people to shelter in place - but many people are leaving anyway.

BLM has closed the entrance but has not prohibited exiting. I've been watching youtube all day - Gate Road is still closed, too muddy, but there's another route that is being used by RV's (many) and cars with higher carriage, whether 4WD or not. Very few people left.

It's not the first time the burn has been delayed, I don't think - and initially they said they were canceling it this year, but the official news bulletin of 2 hours ago says it's on again - 9:30 tonight. It's pretty dry out where the Man actually is. The attempts of people to move their vehicles have made the main camp area much more soggy.

At any rate, people continue to leave, and Burning Man continues to operate. BLM is assisting people at various points along the exit road, and so is BMOrg, actually (now running shuttles). I've been surprised at the number of Burners who have walkie talkies or satellite phones (should have expected it).

The rain seems to have come in (per the radar) but may not be very strong by the time it hits the Playa (we often have rain in the upper layers here in California that will deposit moisture on higher altitudes, but be virga by the time it gets to the ground).

Can't wait to see what happens!

(Latest update from someone on the Playa says they think the rain is arriving in about 20 minutes - at 3 pm PST).

The BM Org might not be able to prohibit people leaving, but BLM can prohibit driving on the playa when it's wet enough to damage the soil, leaving people to walk out. I think that was in force last night. But as I said, by this morning it seemed like anyone whose vehicle could manage in the muck was permitted out. And around noon I drove a few towns over and when I returned, town was full of cars, meaning a significant number of folks were able to leave. My town is one of the places they stop for food etc after getting out of the dust or mud.

I've been away from the computer for a few hours so now I'll go check the livestream to see what it looks like. I often watch the beginning of the burn online, but I don't usually stay up late enough to see much beyond the beginning.

 

[La Louve]

To give everyone a spatial orientation of Black Rock City, think of an analog clock face. The Man sits at the very center of the clock face. From the Man to the first "street" Esplanade, is about 2500 feet. The alphabetical streets run in partial concentric rings from the 2 to the 10 position in a sweeping arc. The numeral streets run in radial fashion according to the clock numbering scheme, in half or quarter hour increments. For instance our group usually camped around 2:30 or 2:45 and I Street. The alphabetical names change with each year's theme. In 2023, the annular streets are named:
Esplanade (the first street is always Esplanade)
Afanc
Bigfoot
Chupacabra
Dingbat
Encantado
Frogbat
Grootslang
Hodag
Igopogo
Jackalope
Kraken

Center Camp is at 6 and Esplanade. The Temple is at the 12 position, also 2500 feet from the Man.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

To give everyone a spatial orientation of Black Rock City, think of an analog clock face. The Man sits at the very center of the clock face. From the Man to the first "street" Esplanade, is about 2500 feet. The city streets run in partial concentric rings from the 2 to the 10 position in a sweeping arc. Center Camp is at 6 and Esplanade. The Temple is at the 12 position, also 2500 feet from the Man.

View attachment 444617

Thanks! I knew about the circles and clock labels but was picturing the Man and the Temple much farther out.

Is the livestream tower located at Center Camp?

I suspect that within a few years, the only young people who will still be able to read an analog clock face will be Burners.

Fun fact: if you zoom in on the Black Rock Desert in Google Maps, at some magnification the concentric circles shown above will appear on the map.

 

[La Louve]

Thanks! I knew about the circles and clock labels but was picturing the Man and the Temple much farther out.

Is the livestream tower located at Center Camp?

I suspect that within a few years, the only young people who will still be able to read an analog clock face will be Burners.

Fun fact: if you zoom in on the Black Rock Desert in Google Maps, at some magnification the concentric circles shown above will appear on the map.

Yes to your question. I think the livestream cam is on a mast located at the radio station, BMIR (aka Burning Man Information Radio). Center Camp is where all the admin is located, where the higher ups in the Org camp, and where the procession of the flame that will ignite the Man starts on Burn Night.

When they first start building the city each year, the first thing they do is drive a golden spike in the ground where the Man will be. All the city measurements and geolocating start from that point.

I love looking at the satellite images that show the ghosts of past Black Rock Cities in the playa. Makes me homesick. I always think of it as a place like "Brigadoon".

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Just saw a post from a Gerlach bulletin board facebook group, that the Man will NOT burn tonight!

How interesting. If they eventually burn in a few days, once it dries out, there might be hardly anyone left on playa by then. Plus then the temple too. Too bad they can't keep them up to burn next year (I just hate to think of the environmental impact of it)

 

[La Louve]

Any art that was intended for burning this week will either have to be dismantled and trucked out or burned when conditions improve. Not to mention all the other art installations that have to be removed that will be delayed. All structures intended for burning, i.e the Man, the Temple, et al are built on burn platforms so the burning itself doesn't damage the playa surface.

DPW (Department of Public Works) is going to be faced with so much more work this year. They usually have 6 weeks to dismantle the infrastructure (lots of communications cabling has to be trenched, laid and buried before the event that now has to be removed), clean up the site of MOOP (Matter Out of Place), and restore the playa to its normal surface before the BLM inspection team comes out to review. The next year's contract depends on passing that inspection. I'm guessing/hoping BLM will give the Org an extension. DPW are the true heroes of the event.

From the map I posted above, note the trash fence is about 11 miles all the way around. Our camp has a traditional trash fence bike ride on Friday morning. We stop a lot for art and snacks and photos but it's a hard ride. I definitely felt it when we got back to camp last time.