‘Storm Area 51’ events get final OK from Lincoln County

On Tuesday, the Lincoln County Commission gave two “Storm Area 51”-themed festivals — Alienstock from Sept. 20-22 in Rachel and Area 51 Basecamp from Sept. 20-21 in Hiko — the green light during a meeting in Pioche, according to Eric Holt, emergency manager for the county.

“They got the final approval, and they are moving forward with promoting and hosting those events,” Holt said.

The commission already approved special event permits for both festivals last month, contingent on the organizers providing detailed plans and insurance coverage at Tuesday’s meeting. Those plans, however, did not include the musicians slated to play at each event, Holt said.

A large law enforcement and emergency responder presence will be stationed throughout the county near both events to handle the influx of up to 15,000 people. About 150 members of various law enforcement organizations, up to 60 medical personnel and other officials will form a roughly 300-person team, Holt said.

The alien-inspired events were spawned after a Facebook post about storming the gates of Area 51, where conspiracy theorists believe extraterrestrial secrets are being kept, went viral. Although the original creator said the idea was a joke, the page has garnered the interest of over 2 million people on the social media site.

Lincoln County pre-signed a declaration of emergency last month ahead of the proposed events. The move was made to help streamline the process if an emergency situation arises and county resources are depleted.

Neighboring Nye County made an emergency declaration last week, as unpermitted gatherings are expected in the area near the Area 51 Alien Travel Center in Amargosa Valley.

Despite the issues the mass of visitors might create for the area, Lincoln County Commissioner Varlin Higbee said the organizers are doing them a favor by gathering people at two planned locations.

“We’re thankful they’re doing this,” he said. “Or otherwise it would be helter-skelter.”

Alienstock

The festival has sold 700 parking passes so far, Holt said. Organizers said to expect musical acts including country, rock ‘n’ roll and electric dance music, in addition to activities and possible book signings.

Mobile shower units, port-a-potties and water stations will be available to attendees.

The festival offers the option to preorder meal tickets from its food truck vendor, The Truck Stop. The company, which advertises itself as a gourmet food truck, is offering prepaid meal vouchers for $12. Customers can add a drink or side for an additional $4, according to the company’s website.

The Southern California-based food truck company will offer vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and paleo food for breakfast, lunch and dinner, according to the website.

The Truck Stop plans to donate 20 percent of preorder meal proceeds to the Little A’Le’Inn to assist in providing supplies and support for the festival.

Alienstock is not charging for entry to the festival grounds, but it is charging for parking and camping spots, which start at $60. Weekend passes are good for Sept. 19-22 and are available at alienstockparking.com.

Area 51 Basecamp

The festival has sold 250 tickets so far, Holt said, but organizers expects to sell most of their tickets the day of the event, through walk-up customers.

Basecamp will have areas for general parking, RV parking, camping spots, an emergency service staging area, port-a-potties, vendor areas and a VIP section.

The lineup of speakers includes cast members of the Netflix documentary “Bob Lazar: Area 51 & Flying Saucers,” ufologists, musicians and artists, according to the its website.

Event hours are 1-11 p.m. daily during the festival, while the Alien Research Center is open from 9 a.m.-11 p.m. daily. Those without camping or RV parking will have to leave the area at 1 a.m. each night.

General admission tickets start at $47 a day, and camping spots start at $57.

Tickets are available via Ticketmaster online. Visit stormarea51basecamp.com.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.