‘Burning Man’ attendees ready to depart waterlogged desert, confirm organizers.

Burning Man Festival- Exodus Begins After⁢ Flash Flooding

Burning Man⁢ festival organizers on Monday said they expect attendees to begin leaving the event site by midday after rain and flash flooding trapped more than 70,000 ‌festival-goers ‍in the northwestern ‍portion ‌of​ the Nevada desert over the weekend.

In a statement, event officials said the main road ⁤to enter and exit the site is drying up but remains⁢ “a⁣ bit too muddy,” with standing water impacting those attempting to navigate out of Black Rock City.

Exodus Planned for Noon

“Exodus⁣ is planned to officially begin around noon today, Monday 9/4,” the statement⁤ reads. “Expect an update again in the ‌next few hours.”

Burning Man festival, which has attracted up to 100,000 ⁢people ⁤to the remote area roughly ​100 miles away from ⁣Reno since the 1980s,‍ describes itself⁣ as a “community​ and global cultural movement” that tests self-sufficiency, promotes radical self-expression, and pinnacles at the end during ⁤the burning of a giant wooden effigy.

The “Man burn”⁢ was⁣ initially scheduled⁤ to happen on Sunday⁤ night, ⁤but ‍festival‍ organizers postponed setting ablaze ‌the effigy at “The Chapel of Babel” at midnight on Tuesday.

Departing the festival, known ‌as “Exodus,” typically takes up ⁤to 12 hours ⁣for festival-goers to leave the site as thousands of cars and trailers drive⁢ off the ⁣playa ​and onto a two-lane desert⁣ highway.

Festival organizers advised attendees​ to wait until ‍Tuesday to⁢ depart to alleviate traffic congestion throughout the day.

Thick, ankle-deep ⁢mud overwhelmed more​ than 70,000 people⁣ attending the annual ‌weeklong summer festival⁣ in the Nevada desert as heavy⁤ rain poured in the⁢ area‌ for several hours, leaving festival-goers stranded and forced ⁤to shelter in place and⁢ conserve resources.

Marian Goodell, CEO of Burning Man ​Project, told NBC News on Sunday that “there is no cause for panic.”

“We’re very pleased and surprised that there‍ has been such ⁤a fuss over us,” she said. “We’ve made it really clear that​ we do not see this as an evacuation situation. The water is drying up.”

This year’s ​event began​ on August 27 and was scheduled to end Monday.⁤ But after heavy rains started flooding the festival⁣ site and adding to an⁤ already saturated playa on Friday night, the Bureau of‍ Land Management and the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office officials closed⁣ the festival’s entrance gate.

Investigation into Death⁣ at Burning Man

Local authorities in the Nevada desert are investigating ‌one death at the Burning Man festival ⁤after rain ⁢and flash ⁣flooding forced‍ tens of thousands of attendees to shelter in ⁣place and conserve resources on Saturday.⁣ Although the deceased person’s identity or the cause of death has ​not been publicly released, authorities ‌said family​ members have been notified. Burning ⁢Man officials said on Sunday‌ that the death was “unrelated to the weather,”⁣ according to The Independent.