Burning Man attendees share ordeal with urine bottles as clean-up begins – live - The Independent

Burning Man 2023 aftermath: Attendees share ordeal with urine bottles as clean-up begins after exodus | The Independent

Burning Man attendees share ordeal with urine bottles as clean-up begins after exodus – live

Organisers have three weeks to clear the sprawling Nevada desert campsite

Andrea Blanco,

Ariana Baio,
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar Comments

The Burning Man exodus appears to have come to an end — paving the way for a massive clean-up job to begin.

Thousands of attendees cleared out from the Nevada desert campsite after being trapped for days when the festival descended into chaos with heavy rainfall, flooding and muddy conditions.

Organisers will now spend the next three weeks cleaning up the sprawling site to fulfil the festival’s key principle of “leave no trace”, after the area was left littered with abandoned vehicles, furniture and trash.

People who attended this year’s festival said they were instructed to urinate in bottles to conserve space in the porta-potties. In the aftermath of the rain trash was left everywhere, wrote Rob Price in Business Insider.

“The porta-potties were surrounded by a halo of shredded toilet paper that clung to shoes,” he added.

The end of the tumultuous exodus comes after officials revealed the suspected cause of death for the man who died during the event.

The man, identified as 32-year-old Leon Reece, was found unresponsive on the playa on Friday, with emergency responders unable to revive him.
1694147441

Burning Man attendees are mostly rich and white men, data shows

A census of Burning Man attendees has found that most “Burners” were rich, white, straight men nearing their 40s.

The crowd remained mostly white at 80 per cent, according to the data from the 2022 festival.

The average festival-goer was a white, well-educated, heterosexual, 37-year-old Democrat with an average income of $100,000.

About 16 per cent of those present reported having household incomes of at least $300,000 a year, compared to only seven per cent of the attendees who reported such high incomes in 2013.

Over 50 per cent of the crowd identified as Democrats, while only 4.2 per cent said they were Republicans.
1694145600

Burning Man conspiracies - debunked

It began with a fake screenshot on the social media platform X, and quickly spread across the internet and to tens of thousands trapped in swamp-like conditions at Burning Man.

The annual festival in the Nevada desert, plagued by tropical storms and mud that forced gate closures and festival goers to shelter in place, was at the centre of an Ebola outbreak, the bogus post claimed on Saturday 2 September.

A cursory glance at the social media account that published the doctored post from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would have revealed its long history of spreading tongue-in-cheek claims about “psyops” and oppressive government operations.

And yet conspiracy theorists quickly flooded the zone with unhinged posts about military aircraft landing in the Black Rock City area, and quarantine zones being set up.

Some were clearly in on the “joke”, others apparently not.

Read more:

Burning Man was an undeniable disaster. But these conspiracies aren’t part of it

As 70,000 Burning Man festivalgoers were braving the elements, rumours of an Ebola outbreak reportedly sent panic through the desert city. It was yet another wild conspiracy theory created by bad actors on Elon Musk’s X, Bevan Hurley writes
1694144666

Burning Man attendees share their experience

Burning man attendees who managed to escape the festival after the washout said they were asked to ration food and urinate in bottles to save space in the portable loos.

Rob Price, a journalist with Business Insider, was a first-time “Burner” at this year’s festival. He writes that in the aftermath of the flooding, the generators failed and the fridges switched off.

The water systems for washing and showering also broke down within hours as the rain turned the mud ankle-deep.

And then there was trash, everywhere.

“The porta-potties were surrounded by a halo of shredded toilet paper that clung to shoes,” Price wrote.

“Despite the food rationing, the mandatory pee bottles, and the malfunctioning infrastructure, Burners, as they call themselves, scraped the dirt off their shoes and got down.”
1694134848

Elon Musk calls Burning Man ‘best art on Earth’

Elon Musk offered lofty praise to the Burning Man festival - after this year’s event descended into disaster with one person dead and thousands left stranded in the Nevada desert after intense floods.

“Burning Man is unique in the world,” Mr Musk wrote on his platform X. “Hard to describe how incredible it is for those who have never been. Best art on Earth.”

The post drew scrutiny for two reasons. First off, it came as the desert festival is suffering from utter chaos on all sides — torrential floods caused by Tropical Storm Hilary, false claims of an Ebola outbreak, tens of thousands of stranded attendees, and even a death caused by reasons “unrelated to the weather.”

On top of this mess, Mr Musk seemed to be commenting on a video from Paris Fashion Week in 2022 — not Burning Man.

Kelly Rissman reports.

Elon Musk calls Burning Man ‘best art on Earth’ amid festival chaos

‘Burning Man is unique in the world,’ the X owner wrote, seeming to be unaware that he was commenting on a Paris Fashion Week video
1694124048

Burning Man death caused by suspected drug intoxication

A California man likely died at the mud-impacted Burning Man festival from drug intoxication, a coroner’s office has said.

Leon Reece, 32, was found unresponsive on the remote and weather-hit Nevada festival grounds on Friday evening, according to authorities.

The exact cause and manner of Reece’s death are still pending but the Washoe County Medical Examiner’s Office said in a statement that drug intoxication was suspected.

Graeme Massie reports.

Burning Man death caused by suspected drug intoxication

Leon Reece, 32, was found unresponsive on the remote and weather-hit Nevada festival grounds on Friday
1694116820

ICYMI: What’s it really like to survive nine days in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert?

The infamous gathering (it’s most definitely not a festival) just finished for another year – but what’s it actually like to pitch up for the full nine days?

Claire Dodd reports:

This is what it's really like to spend nine days at Burning Man

The infamous gathering (it’s most definitely not a festival) just finished for another year – but what’s it actually like to pitch up for the full nine days?
1694109620

Burning Man organisers face clean-up deadline

The rain has passed, and the temple has burned. Now, as Burning Man slowly empties, it’s time to clean up.

Burning Man organizers have three weeks to clean up the sprawling stretch of public land in the Black Rock Desert of northwestern Nevada, but a summer storm that left tens of thousands stranded in ankle-deep mud could alter that timeframe.

One of the principles of Burning Man is to leave no trace — an expectation that all attendees will pack out everything they brought to Black Rock City and clean out their camps before leaving.

But in the aftermath of torrential rains that closed roads, jamming traffic, and forcing many to walk miles barefoot through the muck, the area is dotted with abandoned vehicles, rugs, furniture, tents and trash. The ground itself has deep imprints and ruts.
1694102424

Three-eyed ‘dinosaur shrimp’ are waking up after Burning Man washout

Yuck.

Triops and fairy shrimp are small crustaceans that can survive years lying dormant in drought conditions. They live in the ground in eggs until weather conditions such as floods can bring them to the surface, says IFL Science.

Nicknamed “dinosaur shrimp”, Triops are relatives of the oldest living creatures, Triops cancriformis, have two main eyes and a pit organ “third eye” that enables insects to detect changes in light and infrared waves.

Fairy shrimp have also resurfaced to join the mud party at Burning Man. Otherwise known as sea monkeys, they are translucent and are very good at withstanding salty environments.

Amelia Neath has more.

Three-eyed ‘dinosaur shrimp’ are waking up in the desert after Burning Man washout

Trying to open your third eye at Burning Man? These dinosaur shrimp are one step ahead of you
1694098824

Elon Musk calls Burning Man ‘best art on Earth’ amid festival chaos

Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk heaped hyerbole on this year’s Burning Man festival after the event descended into disaster, with one person dead and thousands left stranded in the Nevada desert after intense floods.

“Burning Man is unique in the world,” Mr Musk wrote on his platform X on Sunday.

“Hard to describe how incredible it is for those who have never been. Best art on Earth.”

Kelly Rissman has more.

Elon Musk calls Burning Man ‘best art on Earth’ amid festival chaos

‘Burning Man is unique in the world,’ the X owner wrote, seeming to be unaware that he was commenting on a Paris Fashion Week video
1694095200

Why trash is a constant problem in Burning Man’s aftermath

Every year, after the nine-day Burning Man festival in the Black Rock Desert finishes, the grounds of Burning Man are littered with trash. This year is likely to be no different – only now, dried mud will likely make an appearance.

Here’s a peak into how the festival affects the area every year.

Gino Spocchia reported last year.

Locals furious over mess left by Burning Man festival

‘It has a positive impact as well’, said local resident of annual spectacle