Wild Burning Man memes and conspiracy theories about cannibalism have started to circulate online as the festival has turned into a washout.
Burning Man 2023 has descended into a muddy mess after a torrential downpour on Friday night turned the desert festival into a muddy swamp. More than 70,000 attendees at this year’s event are stranded in the dry lake bed of the Black Rock Desert, with festivalgoers being urged to “shelter in place” until the waters subside, as well as conserve food and other supplies. Officials closed almost all entrances to and exits from the festival, though some have managed to leave the festival site on foot.
One death has been confirmed at the Festival so far
Sadly, festival organizers also reported a death on the festival site, which was later confirmed by the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office. Local officials said on Sunday that the death occurred during the “rain event” and was “still under investigation.”
While the details surrounding the death were kept secret, after the online news spread, several crazy conspiracy theories about this festival emerged.
Wild Burning Man Cannibalism Conspiracy Theories circulate Online
Another rumor claimed that Ebola had been spreading around Burning Man. Unsubstantiated reports went viral claiming that a billionaire had been found half-eaten and dead.
“There’s been several unconfirmed reports of cannibalism taking place on Saturday at Burning Man due to the dwindling food supply,” oneRedditUser writes
They claimed: “A small group of survivors was trapped by the trash fence overnight during the rainstorm and were forced to consume one of their camp mates before making the several mile dangerous trek back to their camp on foot.”
One Twitter user wrote: “We’re hearing about the first reports of Cannibalism at the Burning Man event.”
Furthermore, one user wrote: “Meet the ageless billionaire that was just found half-eaten and dead at Burning Man” along with a picture of the alleged individual.
Community Notes quickly added a note to correct the original tweet.
It read: ‘The photo shown is of Bryan Johnson who is still living and there have been no reports of his death. He’s active on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. The tweet that he sent was made 11 minutes prior to his latest Instagram story. These facts indicate Bryan Johnson is alive.’
Furthermore, there have been no actual reports of festivalgoers resorting to cannibalism at Burning Man, so we can safely say people haven’t totally lost their minds just yet.
Burning Man memes hilariously resurface after festival washout
Burning Man memes abound online, even though the festival washed out.
Someone used footage from a 2022 Balenciaga fashion show, which was set in a muddy convention center in Paris – and claimed it was from Burning Man.
“Despite the unexpected challenges, some artists managed to put together an impromptu catwalk show,” the post read. “The ‘I’m in the mud’ show is a metaphor for trying stuff and always learning.”
Some used the phrase ‘JOMO’ or the ‘Joy of Missing Out’ in relation to their relief at dodging a bullet by not attending this year’s festival.
Here’s some of the other best memes doing the rounds: