Social media users poke fun at Burning Man 2023 chaos as thousands stranded

04 September 2023 , 15:27

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Burning Man has been a washout for revellers (Image: Kyodo)

Social media users have poked fun at the Burning Man 2023 chaos after tens of thousands of attendees were left stranded following a lengthy downpour.

Heavy rain at the event, which is held in a desert in Nevada, turned it into a mud bath and left nearly 72,000 revellers unable to exit the festival. Many were left knee-deep in mud and were told to conserve food, fuel, and water as they took shelter from the extreme weather after more a half an inch of rain fell at the festival site on Friday, disrupting this year’s festival.

Portable toilet facilities were temporarily out of action as cars were unable to drive on the mud to empty them. The organisers postponed the event's traditional finale - the burning of an effigy - to Monday evening.

Thousands have been left stranded by the weather (Kyodo)

The rainstorm hit the Black Rock Desert near the end of last week is thought to have been the longest rainfall since the festival began more than 30 years ago. And while organisers told the thousands of attendees to shelter in place, many of them uploaded their experiences to social media, which gave users on X, formerly Twitter, plenty of material to work with.

Several posts were based on "JOMO" — or the Joy of Missing Out - as users lined up to express their relief they weren't at the chaotic festival. "Being trapped at Burning Man seems almost as bad as being trapped in a conversation with someone who went to Burning Man, " one user wrote.

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The site was turned into a mud pit (AFP via Getty Images)

Another took footage from a 2022 Balenciaga fashion show, which was set in a muddy convention centre outside of Paris, and joked it was actually taken at this year's Burning Man. "Despite the unexpected challenges, some artists managed to put together an impromptu catwalk show," the post read. "The 'I'm in the mud' show is a metaphor for trying stuff and always learning."

While another person referenced an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants, wherein SpongeBob is forced to drive a rock. "If you're in burning man you need to find one of these. The pioneers used to ride these babies for miles," the post.

A rainbow over the muddy grounds (David Crane/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

Many festival goers including Remi Dessinges told NBC the festival was fun until the rain started on Thursday, he admitted: "I’ll come back but maybe not next year." Dawn Looney told CNN that people were making the best of the situation. “We are great. It is a great community. We rallied together. Staff has plans X, Y and Z, and everybody’s kind of having a good time, oddly enough.”

Scott London, a southern California photographer, said everyone was having a good time, adding: “We are a little bit dirty and muddy but spirits are high. The party is still going."

Liam Buckler