Burning Man gates open for worker access after delays from former Hurricane Hilary

Burning Man gates are expected to open and welcome burners Wednesday after being closed for two days due to rain and mud from Hurricane Hilary.

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"The Gate will open today, Wednesday 8/23," said Burning Man organizers in an update posted to X. The organizers said Work Access Pass (WAP) holders, who were affected by the closures, have been assigned entry windows, and that more information has been communicated to them via email.

"Before you hit the road, read your email carefully," read the post.

Festival organizers also requested visitors to drive safely, maintain speed limits and respect the neighbors.

Although Burning Man officially begins on August 27, Burners ferrying art cars and installations will begin trickling into the playa sooner to begin constructing the city. Roughly 80,000 people are expected to attend the event, a figure in line with recent years.

The annual Burning Man festival takes place at the Black Rock City in northwestern Nevada, a temporary city erected in the Black Rock Desert about 100 miles north-northeast of Reno.

Closures, delays

On Tuesday, organizers had asked visitors and set-up crews to delay their arrival on the playa.

"Daily chances of showers and storms linger through the remainder of the week, but odds lower significantly today onward," the National Weather Service said. "Temperatures warm through the week with a return of typical breezy southwest winds late this week."

Burning Man organizers are exercising caution and ask "all early arrival workers and campers to delay their travel and not come to Gerlach," the town 100 miles north of Reno that is the gateway to the Black Rock Desert.

In a Tuesday morning post on X, Burning Man Traffic said that the gate to the event will remain closed until noon Wednesday.

“DO NOT drive to Gerlach, you will be turned around — there are no rooms available,” the post said.

Flood watchBurning Man weather: Black Rock under flood watch this week

Dominique Debucquoy-Dodley, Burning Man's associate director of communications, said that temporary gate closures are not abnormal.

“In this case, we’re thankful the rain took place early during set up and isn’t affecting too many folks, and that our teams already in Black Rock City are safe," Debucquoy-Dodley said.

Pictures shared by artists behind this year's temple structure called the 'Temple of the Heart' also posted a photo of water flooding the structure.

Monday saw the worst weather resulting from Hilary, which was downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone after Sunday night. The Burning Man area of the Black Rock Desert was put under a flood watch until 5 a.m. Tuesday, by the National Weather Service.