Burning Man festival in Nevada, US ends with 8-hour-long traffic jam

The Burning Man festival returned last weekend for the first time in three years following the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the festivities ended in a dismal tone when attendees were stuck for hours in traffic. On Monday, September 5, the nine-day Burning Man Festival in Nevada, United States, came to a conclusion. Further, when the attendees left the venue in the Black Rock Desert, they confronted an eight-hour-long traffic jam with many people encountering gasoline shortages at gas stations along the road. 

According to Burning Man's official travel account on Twitter, “Exodus wait time is currently around 8 hours”. The festival attracted nearly 80,000 people who converged in Gerlach, Nevada's Black Rock Desert for nine days. The tweet further read, "Consider delaying your departure until conditions improve." 

It also added, “If you must leave now, drive on L Street to prevent traffic jams. Drive slowly, watch for road debris, follow directions from Gate staff, and listen to BMIR 94.5FM.” Notably, the multi-day celebration of 'anti-consumerism and self-expression', Burning Man takes place in the Black Rock Desert. 

Attendees expressed dissatisfaction over the long-hour Traffic Jam

Furthermore, one dissatisfied attendee shared pictures showing 15 lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic which as per him resembled something from a classic disaster film. Taking to Twitter, he wrote, “Tho people love to compare the #Burningman aesthetic to Mad Max…the Exodus from camp is the most Mad Max I’ve felt all week…5 hours in, two more till I reach the exit gate.” 

Another frustrated person who attended the celebration claimed, "When we left at 8:38 p.m. last night, the estimate was 6 hours, but half of our group took 10 hours, and the other half of our group took 12 hours to get to the gate," New York Post reported. Some people allegedly had to wait as long as 12 hours to leave the event. 

Apart from the traffic incident, the Burning Man was also troubled by a sandstorm similar to the Dust Bowl on Saturday, which the Daily Mail claimed covered festivalgoers in dust and prevented them from seeing the sun. Additionally, it resulted in a "white out" that compelled organisations to close site entrances and exits. During the week, temperatures also peaked at 105 degrees. 

The Burning Man is basically a massive effigy, resembling "Wicker Man," which was lit as in previous years as the "fire" festival's grand finale, continuing a tradition established when it was first held in 1989. 

(Image: Twitter/ @CJYU)