It’s hard to know what the Coronavirus situation will be in August of this year when Burning Man is scheduled to commence, but there’s no question in my mind that if today’s situation is unchanged by late summer, then a gathering of 70,000 half-naked, hug-hungry people in the desert of Nevada will not take place.
But there’s way more to consider than just the timing of the Burn itself. DPW and Burning Man staff will begin working in the desert in the next couple of months, and the org will have to decide ahead of this time frame whether to risk people’s health by putting a concentration of workers together in relatively close proximity. Therefore, I would expect to hear a decision from the org very soon.
If you have tickets and are making plans to attend the Burning Man Festival in August, keep doing what you’re doing for now. But stay in touch with the org to get the latest information. Subscribe to the Jack Rabbit Speaks email publication — an excellent and accurate source of news. Also, you can always check in on the Burning Man.org website, or the various Facebook sites that cover Burning Man activities. If you are part of a theme camp, check-in with your camp mayor or leader and make certain they are planning to communicate the status of Burning Man as soon as they hear something.
It’s urgent that you rely only on knowledgeable people and reliable sources of information. Rumors and conspiracy theories are the lifeblood of many internet sites, so be cautious about blockbuster news that comes from only a single, lesser-known source. Real news about Burning Man will be big news for all media, so wait until you hear it from one of the sources mentioned above or from the so-called mainstream media.
Meanwhile, we can all do whatever we can to keep ourselves and our family and friends as safe and healthy as possible. Staying well is the best way to know that you can attend Burning Man if it is held this year. Getting sick is to be avoided at all costs. Stay home and take advantage of the robust entertainment sources that we all receive daily. Work on the house, do that project you’ve been thinking about for years, build an art car; but, please, don’t party down with large crowds of people for now.
If we all work together we can get past this pandemic with the least possible impact on our lives. Then we’ll be sure to meet at Burning Man sometime soon — whether this year or next.