Have you seen videos of a fire tornado at Burning Man? One video in particular has gone viral on sites like X, formerly known as Twitter, with many people insisting the fire tornado is something that’s happening this year. But the videos going viral are actually from last year.
The Burning Man festival is held every year in the Nevada desert and attracts large crowds of people who camp out in the middle of nowhere. And this year the site has suffered from severe rain that’s created a muddy mess, which has forced organizers to actually shut down the only road leading in and out of the event.
The video that’s gone viral on X doesn’t actually claim that the fire tornadoes are happening this year, but that’s clearly how countless people have interpreted it.
Oddly enough, the folks at Burning Man right now have the opposite problem that faced event-goers last year. Photos published at news outlets like CNN show an extremely muddy environment, precisely the opposite of what you’d see for fire tornadoes. The dust, which is a common problem at Burning Man, isn’t going anywhere when a thick layer of mud stops everything in its tracks.
Internet users have also published rather dire looking footage from this year’s rain-filled event.
People at Burning Man are being told to conserve food and water since nobody can make it in or out of the event right now, which, again, is held in the middle of nowhere. They’re also being told to shelter in place.
“Do not travel to Black Rock City! Access to the city is closed for the remainder of the event, and you will be turned around,” one Burning Man informational account tweeted on Saturday.
Typically about 70,000 people attend Burning Man each year, but it’s not clear how many might currently be stuck. The event this year is being held from August 28 to September 5 and unfortunately more rain is expected tonight.
Overnight low temperatures are expected to dip to about 49 degrees, according to CNN, a cold experience when you’re camping and wet. Be safe out there, folks. And don’t fall for old viral videos.
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