Last Updated on September 7, 2023
The person who died at the Burning Man festival in Nevada on Friday has been identified as 32-year-old Leon Reece. The Washoe County Medical Examiner’s Office said on Tuesday that drug intoxication is suspected, but the exact cause of death is still pending.
Reece was found unresponsive on the playa around 6:24 p.m. local time as the area was inundated with rain. Emergency responders were unable to revive him.
The death comes as Burning Man was plagued by heavy rainfall, flooding, and muddy conditions. Attendees were finally allowed to leave the festival on Monday afternoon after the weather subsided.
The Aftermath of Burning Man 2023
Tempers frayed during the exodus, with Pershing County Sheriff Jerry Allen saying that attendees “lashed out” at each other as they waited to leave the desert.
The annual Burning Man festival in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert has faced numerous problems this year, including low ticket sales, flooding, and protests by climate activists.
Officials have also debunked a conspiracy theory that the festival was hit with an Ebola outbreak.
The last of Burning Man’s crowds left the Nevada desert on Wednesday morning, leaving behind a mess of mud, trash, and abandoned vehicles.
The local sheriff was disappointed that festivalgoers did not live up to the event’s principles of community, responsibility, and leaving no trace. The cleanup is now underway.
Read also: 25 Years of Google Doodles: Celebrating the First Doodle, Which Was Inspired by Burning Man
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