Burning Man’s infamous ‘Orgy Dome’ has been destroyed by high winds during a severe dust storm that ripped through the Nevada festival site.
The structure, a private tent outfitted with air conditioning, beds, and ambient lighting, was swept away on Sunday due to severe weather that struck Black Rock City over the weekend.
The storm wreaked havoc on the arts festival, with winds reaching 50 mph, knocking over structures, disrupting campsites, and compelling many attendees to seek refuge.
Organizers confirmed: ‘Our build team worked so hard this past week to *erect* our lovely space.
‘Unfortunately, the winds yesterday undid all that labor and wrecked our structure.
‘We are still here and thankfully safe, we hope to gift the playa some workshops and will keep you updated.’
Dramatic video footage revealed the extent of the damage, with metal tent poles mangled, the roof swept away, and the beds nowhere to be seen.
The notorious ‘Orgy Dome’ at Burning Man was destroyed by intense winds during a harsh dust storm that tore through the Nevada festival site.
Viewers were quick to share their thoughts, as many Burning Man fans have been left disappointed by the way the festival has turned out this year.
One person said, ‘The wind is doing the lord’s work,’ while another added ‘Jesus said, ‘NOT TODAY YOU HEATHENS!’
Organizers of the orgy dome, founded in 2003, said it was ‘beyond repair’.
But officials appealed for wall, ball bungees, pipes, and zippers in an apparent effort to salvage it.
The festival’s Orgy Dome is described as a ‘sex-positive community dedicated to educating the public on consent and its significance beyond intimate settings.’
The dome offers festival-goers a chance to engage in group activities. Inside, participants find mattresses, drapes, cozy sofas, and plenty of pillows.
The tent’s demolition occurred after a violent dust storm and strong winds created havoc and significant travel disruptions near the annual event, which commenced on Sunday.
Videos captured by early arrivals showed multiple men, covered in dust, trying to hold down metal poles as they were nearly dragged away by the wind.
Other footage showed people blocking dust from their eyes and scrambling to secure their belongings.
The National Weather Service issued a dust storm advisory on Saturday evening, sharing that ‘a wall of blowing dust’ was headed towards the grounds.
Four minor injuries have been reported as a result of the weather, which a Burning Man spokesperson confirmed to NBC News.
At least one large art installation was also ruined by the storm – an eight-ton inflatable thundercloud called ‘Black Cloud’, by Ukrainian artist Oleksiy Sai.
The 15-foot-high piece was designed to symbolize ‘unseen threats and looming catastrophes’ but it was torn apart within 15 minutes of arriving at the festival.
It stood in Kyiv’s historic Sophia Square in June, producing flashes of lightning and the rumble of thunder in evocation of war, before being transported to the US.
On Tuesday, after the Orgy Tent was destroyed, organisers warned festivalgoers about the ongoing weather disruption.
‘Thunderstorm approaching the event site from the north. Light precipitation is currently falling in BRC. Possible strong winds in the next 20 minutes. Take care of your camps, and let your neighbors know,’ officials said.
The official Burning Man page took to X to warn visitors on Saturday, ‘If you are in Black Rock City, batten down the hatches, take care of your camp, and do not drive.’
Another attendee took to Facebook, writing, ’50 mile an hour sustained wind for over an hour with higher gusts.
‘The desert is always trying to kill you,’ adding that it was ‘definitely the scariest experience’ during Burning Man.
Burning Man organizers took extra precautions Sunday night and closed the gates to Black Rock City, preventing anyone from going in or out until the worst of the storm blew over.
Flights were also halted as officially strongly urged folks to stay off the roads.
The gates reopened early Monday morning, with festivalgoers up early, repairing their camps and retrieving lost belongings.
Burning Man is an annual event held since 1986 focused on community, art, expression and self-reliance, held in the temporary Black Rock City in Nevada.
Participants build elaborate artistic structures, and the event culminates in the burning of a 75-foot wooden effigy called ‘The Man’.
The original Burning Man festivals in the late eighties were attended by just a few hundred people, but numbers ballooned to more than 10,000 in the nineties.
Figures rose each year with the exception of Covid cancellations in 2020 and 2021, to a climax of 75,000 people in attendance for the 2022 event.
However, recently attendance has dropped off a little, with 73,000 Burners recorded in 2023, and 72,000 last year.
This year’s figure is estimated between 70,000 and 80,000.
The current sand storms come after the festival was hit with flash floods the previous two years, which turned the site into a swamp and washed out the only route in, causing major traffic jams.
