Burning Man participants take dust storm in stride

BLACK ROCK CITY, Nev. — Gusty winds swirled the fine desert dust into sandstorms Saturday, causing near whiteout conditions during final preparations for Burning Man.

Thousands of people are already inside the boundaries of the temporary city that will house 70,000 festivalgoers for a week starting Sunday morning. The annual event on a remote playa two hours north of Reno is renowned for its near-total lack of commerce, art, music and performance events, and an anything-goes attitude.

Saturday, however, it was the wind and dust drawing all of the attention. Several encampments suffered collapses early Saturday morning as gusts bent poles and flattened tents.

"Sucks," said Jenny Diluzio of Denver during a break in a storm that squashed one of her camp's yurts. "But I'd rather it be windy and dusty than 105 degrees."

Diluzio's camp, called "I need an adult ..." will feature an elevated bar and tire swing.

A few hundred yards away, Boise city firefighter Gregg Briggs supervised construction of a 50-foot-tall structure his team then loaded with couches. Known as the Altitude Lounge, the camp draws DJs to perform high in the air.

Growing concerned about the wind, Briggs installed an anemometer to measure the wind speeds, which he discovered were gusting to 30 mph.

"We gave all our our spare anchors to the camp next door," he said. "I looked and the little stakes they were using and. ... The thing I worry about is that canopy coming loose and wrapping around us, making a big sail."

The winds were expected to die down by Saturday evening, with clear skies predicted for at least the next several days. Participants said the dust storms, which occur regularly, are part of the experience that sets Burning Man apart.