Burning Man 2024: Because Who Needs a Smooth Start?

Oh, Burning Man, you annual beacon of radical self-expression and extreme weather mishaps, you've done it again. The first day of the 2024 festival was a literal hot mess, with tragedy and delays stealing the spotlight.

Tragedy Strikes on Day One

In a statement that's about as fun as a sunburn, the Burning Man Project confirmed the death of an attendee. Emergency services tried their best at 11:29 a.m., but alas, it wasn't enough. Pershing County Sheriff Jerry Allen chimed in, telling the Reno Gazette Journal that deputies were on the scene by 11:37 a.m. The victim? An unnamed woman, because of course, privacy matters more than our burning curiosity.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the decedent," said the sheriff's office, because thoughts and prayers always fix everything. The woman's age and name are being withheld until the next of kin can be notified. Meanwhile, the death remains under investigation, pending an autopsy.

Burning Man, ever the virtuous hippie, offered their "thoughts and condolences" and promised to cooperate with authorities. They also asked for privacy, because nothing says "radical transparency" like a shroud of secrecy.

Weather Delays: Because Nature Loves Irony

As if one tragedy wasn't enough, Mother Nature decided to throw a tantrum. The festival gates opened a breezy 12 hours late due to rain and muddy conditions. Because who needs punctuality when you can have a good old-fashioned weather delay?

The Gazette Journal reported that 20,000 attendees were left waiting like kids outside a candy store. Located in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, Burning Man is no stranger to weather complications. Remember 2023, when heavy rainfall turned the festival into a real-life mud wrestling match? Good times.

Burning Man: The Basics

For those living under a rock (or just not into desert raves), Burning Man runs from Aug. 25 through Sept. 2 this year. Attendance is expected to top 70,000, down from 2022's 75,069 and 2019's 78,850. In a shocking turn of events, 2024 is the first year since 2011 that tickets didn't sell out.

Burning Man started in 1986 when founders Larry Harvey and Jerry James set fire to a human-shaped sculpture at Baker Beach in San Francisco. Because nothing says "art" like a flaming effigy. The festival soon outgrew its humble beginnings and moved to the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.

Today, "Burners" flock to the desert to create a temporary utopia, complete with villages, a medical center, an airport, and performance stages. It's all about self-expression and sticking it to the man (aka capitalism). Money is obsolete; instead, attendees borrow, barter, and trade. It's like a giant, adult version of summer camp, complete with questionable hygiene and potential arrests. Because even utopias have their downsides.