More chaos has unfolded at the Burning Man festival as revellers clashed during the exodus from the Nevada desert.
Attendees finally began leaving the city at Black Rock City on Monday afternoon after severe flooding and muddy conditions left thousands stranded over the weekend.
During the mass exodus, Pershing County Sheriff Jerry Allen said that attendees “lashed out” at each other as they faced an eight-hour wait to leave.
“As usually happens in what Burners refer to as the ‘default world’ people allow their emotions to override their reasonableness and they are lashing out at each other as they leave the playa and attempt to make it to their next destination,” he told the San Francisco Chronicle.
The man who died during the festival was also identified as 32-year-old Leon Reece. The exact cause and manner of Reece’s death are still pending but the Washoe County Medical Examiner’s Office said in a statement on Tuesday that drug intoxication was suspected.
Meanwhile, officials continue to field conspiracies including a debunked theory that the festival was hit with an Ebola outbreak.
The annual burning of the man went ahead on Monday evening, after being delayed by the weather.
