Burning Man attendee details what happened at flooded music event: ‘This isn’t so fun anymore’
Burning Man attendee Griffin Kirsch shares his experience at the festival where heavy rain and flooding left event-goers stranded in the Nevada desert.
Each summer, tens of thousands of people, including celebrities like Heidi Klum, Paris Hilton and Cindy Crawford, make camp in the Nevada desert for the infamous Burning Man festival.
The event, which kicked off Sunday, involves music and stunning art installations, but is also clothing-optional and at times a bit hedonistic — more about the "Orgy Dome" later.
Other celebrities who have enjoyed the desert party in the past include Katy Perry, Cara Delevingne, Alessandra Ambrosio, Karlie Kloss and Adrian Grenier.
The event was famously derailed last year when a rainstorm stranded thousands of festivalgoers in the mud, including several A-listers.
CHRIS ROCK, DIPLO RESCUED FROM BURNING MAN DISASTER AFTER 6 MILE TREK THROUGH MUD
Cindy Crawford takes a selfie in front of a Burning Man art installation to commemorate her first trip to the festival in 2022. (Cindy Crawford/Instagram)
Chris Rock and DJ Diplo walked for six miles in the mud before they were offered a ride on a truck by a fan.
Diplo shared video on his Instagram of himself, Rock and several other "Burners," as they’re called, walking through the mud and then sitting on the back of the truck after they were rescued.
Rock, wearing a large jacket, could be heard talking about how much he wanted a "cold brew."
"I legit walked the side of the road for hours with my thumb out cuz i have a show in dc tonight and didnt want to let yall down," the DJ wrote in the caption about a gig he was able to make that night. "Also shoutout to this guy for making the smart purchase of a truck not knowing it was for this exact moment."
Diplo later told CNN that the night before they trekked out, he and Rock had eaten dinner with Cindy Crawford, her husband Randy Gerber, daughter Kaia Gerber, Austin Butler and others and discussed what they would do because there was more rain in the forecast and no chance to drive out.
He said Crawford's family also walked with them.
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Paris Hilton shared photos of her 2022 trip to Burning Man on Facebook, writing "Honey, I'm home." (Paris Hilton/Facebook)
He explained that if people had tried to drive out of the festival they would have gotten stuck in the mud, and it could create a traffic jam.
The DJ joked that Rock was worried about "cannibalism" if they started to run low on food, but said he knew that Burners are self-reliant and festival organizers knew what they were doing.
Still, attendees who were stranded at their camps for days amid the bad weather were asked to conserve resources, and toilets nearly overflowed as the roughly 73,000 attendees waited for the road out to open.
"Yes we all know burning man ended in ebola, cannibalism and people drowning in puddles but I wanna talk about the double rainbows, the mud sculptures the sunsets, the great people and the excellent music I got to play with great friends," Diplo joked in an Instagram caption last September. (None of that happened). "the community and the self reliance that got everyone back safe and all the good memories."
He added that his six-mile hike out "might have been a highlight."
Diplo shared a photo of himself in front of a rainbow while at Burning Man last year. (Diplo/Instagram)
Last year was Crawford's second Burning Man experience.
In 2022, she shared photos on Instagram of the event, writing, "I still can’t believe I went to Burning Man this time last week! @kaiagerber and I got a last minute invite from friends and we looked at each other and said ‘why, not?!’ We we’re so fortunate to go with experienced ‘burners’ who took us under their wings and showed us the ropes. It was everything I hoped it would be and so much more."
Crawford added that the experience "enabled me to reconnect to my maiden self— adventurous, fun, curious and carefree. Sometimes the roles we play in ‘real’ life disconnect us from our most joyous selves and only when we are so far out of our comfort zone, we have no other choice but to look within."
While the festival can be whatever each Burner wants to make of it — there are stunning art installations, concerts, yoga and meditation — and celebrating your hedonistic side is not required, it’s also not discouraged.
Inventive but skimpy outfits, which often include pasties for women, or just outright nudity are not uncommon at the event.
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Tens of thousands of people attend the Burning Man festival each year. (Mike Nelson//AFP via Getty Images)
The festival wrote in a social post ahead of this year’s event that Burners are encouraged to leave their "comfort zones."
"In a world that feels more divided, the need for connection, creativity, and well-being becomes crucial," the organizers wrote. "Burning Man encourages us to leave our comfort zones, engage with people from all walks of life, and create something truly special together. The path may be challenging, but the growth, the community, and the joy we find along the way make it all worthwhile."
Festivalgoers can camp on their own or join themed ones, including the infamous Orgy Dome, where Burners can have a "safer, consensual place to play" at Burning Man, according to the organizers. The Orgy Dome has been at Burning Man since 2004.
The Orgy Dome is "an air-conditioned sex haven where guests can visit in groups of two or more," Cosmopolitan wrote in 2016. "Its creators claim that 5,000 attendees cavorted within its folds last year."
Fireworks at Burning Man. (Julie Jammot/AFP via Getty Images)
A 26-year-old production assistant from California, who participated in the Orgy Dome, told the magazine that there was a long line to get in, and she was interviewed to make sure she was sober enough to consent. She said festival workers also made sure participants were aware of the rules inside the Dome, including required verbal consent to engage in activities.
"Inside, the main space has mattresses on either side of a main walkway," she explained. "I was comfortable right away — once you see a lot of other people having sex, it becomes pretty easy to feel like you can do it, too."
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It's not known what celebrities, if any, have enjoyed the Orgy Dome in the past.
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