Organisers of Californian festival Desert Daze have issued a statement after Tame Impala‘s set was cancelled three songs in due to adverse weather conditions.
A staff member appeared onstage three songs into the Australian band’s set on Friday night (October 12) to announce that the gig was being cut short due to a thunderstorm, urging fans to seek shelter. Until two hours earlier, organisers had reportedly insisted they would still play.
Due to safety concerns regarding dangerous weather, we are asking all guests to immediately exit the Desert Daze grounds and return to their cars and seek shelter. We ask that you stay in your cars and remain calm. We intend to continue on, but first need to consult with police
— Desert Daze (@desertdaze) October 13, 2018
The decision unsurprisingly caused outrage among festival-goers on social media. Many claimed that it wasn’t the only problem with the event, with Desert Daze subsequently posting an apology for poor traffic conditions.
One fan called the festival “a disaster from the start”, while another described it as “a trainwreck of logistical nightmares.”
definitely saw only 4 tame impala songs before desert daze was cancelled for the night. great performance but this whole festival was kinda a disaster from the start
— tyler from debate (@tyisastupidname) October 13, 2018
Greetings from @desert_daze 2018. So far, it’s been a trainwreck of logistical nightmares and unfortunate weather patterns. 3+ hour lines to park (missed 3 sets) and then Tame Impala cut short after 4 songs due to lightning storms.
— Greg Franklin (@kentuckychrome) October 13, 2018
Waited 4 hours in line to get into Desert Daze, didn’t see any bands, then saw Tame Impala for 2 songs then a storm hit and we had to evacuate. Lovee it
— thicc nicc (@lacroixboynick) October 13, 2018
I spent more time in my car than in the festival. I only bought a day pass and didn’t watch a single artist perform… (With the exception of 15 minutes of Tame Impala) I don’t get the chance to have my experience made up to me because only a day pass
— Yoseph Ghazal (@broseph_yoseph) October 13, 2018
? @tameimpala sounded incredible at @desert_daze… until a man came onstage after the third song and said everyone had to go back to their tents and cars because of a lightning storm pic.twitter.com/vfC2bDXqHh
— ???????? (@scottgum) October 13, 2018
In the statement, organisers said: “We’ve been planning our move to Lake Perris for many months and are working side-by-side with Park Rangers to make this a special and safe event. Last night, due to extreme lightning storms rolling in a few songs after the start of Tame Impala’s set, we unfortunately had to ask all guests to exit the Desert Daze grounds, return to their cars and seek shelter to remain safe.
“We worked closely with CalFire, Park Rangers and meteorologists to make the difficult decision to halt the show and immediately implement our event’s contingency plan. We decided to end the remainder of the evening’s programming once it was clear the weather was going to continue to be a safety issue. The safety of our guests is our top priority.”
They also acknowledged issues attendees had getting into the festival “in a timely fashion”, saying they had been “proactive in trying to resolve this”. “We redirected all vehicles to Transition Road and Via Del Lago, changed the location of the Main Box Office, and shifted all campers to be processed directly via the camping entry, alleviating some of the congestion.
The statement continued to say that although Tame Impala could not perform later in the weekend “due to scheduling”, the organisers were working with the rest of the performers on Friday evening “to reschedule as many of them as possible”.
“The Desert Daze staff spent the rest of the night and morning remaining available to any patrons in need of assistance and preparing the grounds for a safe and enjoyable second day on site at Moreno Beach, Lake Perris State Recreation Area,” organisers said. “The Desert Daze grounds are open today and we look forward to welcoming fans back for the rest of the weekend.”
Tame Impala posted a message of their own on Instagram, with the caption: “Devastated. Sorry Desert Daze. Hope everyone’s safe.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bo3VcBoHm9P/?utm_source=ig_embed
The festival had previously announced that it would take place despite advance warnings of adverse weather, but advised attendees against sleeping in their tents.
“We’ve been advised by the meterologist that the current lightning-containing storm cells will last throughout the night,” they said the night before Tame Impala’s set. “Chances are this storm will be passing by morning. Therefore, we strongly advise AGAINST sleeping in your tent due to threat of lightning.”