Burning Man canceled as physical event due to coronavirus fears

The Burning Man festival has been canceled this year amid the coronavirus pandemic, but festival organizers have announced an online Black Rock City to celebrate.

Ticket sales for the gathering, which is held during the summer in the Northern Nevada desert and typically attracts about 80,000 people, already were postponed at the beginning of April. Organizers announced on the festival’s website on Friday that the in-person aspect of the counterculture event is canceled.

The event was scheduled for Aug. 30 to Sept. 7.

There will be a Virtual Black Rock City intended to represent the previously established 2020 theme of the “Multiverse,” according to the festival’s website. All details about the online-only event were not available Saturday morning.

“Like That Thing in the Desert, we will have costs and will need to create some kind of ‘ticket,’” the website said. “We’re working out those details and will share them as soon as we can.”

Organizers said they have “the intention” to offer refunds for those who had purchased tickets. Tickets for the festival start at $475 each, plus a $140 vehicle pass, according to the event’s website.

“To that end, we’re going to ask that you consider gifting the value (or a portion of the value) of your purchased ticket back to Burning Man Project as a tax-deductible donation,” the website said.

Refunds can be requested online through one’s “Burner Profile.” Ticket buyers will then be emailed specific instructions.

The refunds were not immediately available as of Saturday, and organizers stated emails will be sent “once we have finished building the refund tool… and are ready to start processing these requests.”

As of Friday, Humboldt County, the rural Nevada county were Burning Man is held, was reporting 18 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Nearby Washoe County had 389 reported cases as of Friday.

The Burning Man event is held near Reno every year in the Black Rock Desert on Bureau of Land Management property.

“We have been working closely with government officials and therefore this decision (to cancel the event) was entirely ours,” organizers posted on the website.

Organizers said they are “working on some ideas” to offset the economic impact on Northern Nevada from canceling the event.

“Given the painful reality of COVID-19, one of the greatest global challenges of our lifetimes, we believe this is the right thing to do,” organizers said about the decision.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.