Tens of thousands of people are trapped by the rains at a festival in the Nevada desert (USA)

MADRID, 3 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Tens of thousands of people who attended the 'Burning Man' festival, held in the northwest of the US state of Nevada, have been trapped in the desert as a result of heavy rains that have fallen overnight and have caused flooding in the area , CNN has reported.

At around 10:45 a.m. (local time) on Saturday, the organizers of the event announced that the gates and the airport of entry and exit of Black Rock City -- the temporary metropolis that appears every year in the desert -- would remain closed and gave to the assistants the order to dose water, food and fuel and to seek shelter.

"Entrance and exit are stopped. Driving is not allowed until the beach surface dries, with the exception of emergency vehicles," the officials explained on the X social network, formerly known as Twitter. "Participants are encouraged to conserve food, water and fuel, and to take refuge in a warm and safe space," they added.

More than 73,000 people have attended the festival, according to the Reno Gazette Journal, although it is unknown how many of them have been affected by the restrictions due to inclement weather.

Far from improving its predictions, the National Weather Service in Reno, Nevada, has warned that the bad weather "is not over" and has advanced that showers and thunderstorms are expected to continue through Sunday. However, the rain in the area will probably stop on Sunday night, according to the agency.

Flood watches remain in effect for northeast Nevada. The weather at this year's festival is in stark contrast to last year, when temperatures were in triple digits, reaching 105 degrees Fahrenheit (40.5 degrees Celsius), reports CNN.

This year, the festival has been marked by different incidents since its inception. On August 27, the day of the inauguration, climate activists and anti-capitalists blocked a road leading to Burning Man, leading to traffic jams that stretched for several kilometres.

The blockade was intended, according to a statement by the coalition of activist groups that organized the protest, Seven Circles, to highlight "the inability of capitalism to cope with climate and ecological collapse."