Festivalgoers tell BFMTV.com how they experienced the 2023 edition of the American Burning Man gathering, affected by heavy rains which transformed the site into a field of mud.
At Burning Man, “everything stopped the moment the rain started.” This American cultural gathering which is held every year in the Black Rock Desert, in northwest Nevada, had a somewhat special 2023 edition.
Last weekend, the festival site turned into a huge quagmire after heavy rains.
“We crossed our fingers that the tent would hold,” testifies Charlotte, a French participant, to BFMTV.com.
“Barefoot in the mud”
“We couldn’t move around anymore,” explains her friend Myriam. Some artistic installations and events have been canceled, and the burning of the wooden giant installed in the center of the “Playa”, which usually marks the end of the festival to which it gives its name, has been postponed until Monday.
But from Saturday morning, “everything started again” and “we looked for ways to turn the music back on,” smile the festivalgoers. They then had to learn to deal with the mud: “we’re not going to lie, we weren’t ready for the cold,” admits Myriam.
“At the beginning, to be able to walk, you had to be barefoot in the mud, and it was really cold,” she says.
Ventriglissses and sculptures
Some tried to take advantage of the gathering despite everything, using the mud for “ventriglissses” or “sculptures”, according to Charlotte. “It brought everyone together a little,” she believes.
Others chose to leave, sometimes on foot, leaving their tents there. Those who tried to return by car were sometimes trapped by the mud. The police in the American state of Nevada also announced on Saturday that they were investigating a death “which occurred during this episode of heavy rain”, without providing further details on the circumstances of the death.
The festival finally reopened on Monday and the approximately 70,000 participants were able to start leaving. For their part, the French women claim to have still “enjoyed” the event.
Source: BFM TV
