Woman’s death at Burning Man is under investigation

A lady died Sunday on the primary day of the Burning Man competition in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, the occasion and native authorities introduced. 

Burning Man emergency service personnel responded to a report of an unresponsive particular person at 11:29 a.m. in Black Rock Metropolis, the Burning Man Mission mentioned in a information launch. Lifesaving measures have been “tried however have been unsuccessful,” officers mentioned. Black Rock Metropolis is a brief metropolis erected for the annual competition.

The Pershing County Sheriff’s Workplace recognized the girl in an announcement Monday afternoon as Kendra Frazer, 39. No hometown was given. The sheriff’s division mentioned her household has been notified.

The workplace mentioned an post-mortem and drug assessments should be accomplished earlier than the trigger and method of loss of life will be decided. Drug assessments, or toxicology screening, can generally take weeks to finish.

In an earlier assertion, the sheriff’s workplace mentioned that it was notified about “the potential loss of life” of a participant at 11:37 a.m. Sunday by the competition and that deputies responded and confirmed the loss of life.

“Our ideas and condolences exit to the household and buddies affected by this loss,” mentioned the Burning Man Mission, the nonprofit group behind the annual occasion.

It mentioned help is on the market to competition members, together with peer help providers, at Black Rock Rangers headquarters and outposts and by way of the Black Rock Metropolis Emergency Providers Division’s disaster help staff. 

“The security and well-being of our workers and neighborhood are paramount,” it mentioned. “We’re cooperating totally with native authorities as they examine this incident. The Pershing County Sheriff’s workplace investigates all deaths that happen in its jurisdiction.”

The competition quickly closed gates to the occasion early Saturday for about 12 hours due to rain.

Final yr, festivalgoer Leon Reece, 32, of Truckee, California, died after he was discovered unresponsive on the competition grounds, authorities mentioned. Drug intoxication was suspected, a coroner’s workplace mentioned in September. 

Reece died amid a weekend of heavy rain that left the venue muddy, roads impassable and plenty of members exiting by foot. Organizers quickly shut down visitors out and in of Black Rock Metropolis.