Sawt Falasteen - Exodus begins at drenched Burning Man party in US desert

With the sun now shining on the colorful makeshift community of 70,000 people called Black Rock City, the roads opened Monday afternoon, kicking off the official exit process known as the "Exodus."

"Exodus operations have officially begun in Black Rock City," the festival said in a statement on its website. "The driving ban has been lifted."

However organizers called on visitors to delay their departures from the site -- a dried-up lake bed in a remote patch of the Nevada desert -- until Tuesday to avoid massive congestion on the way out.

Festival-goers had been stranded since torrential rains, described as two to three months' worth in the space of hours, came down Friday night and Saturday, turning the venue into a quagmire.

So-called "Burners" wearing trademark outlandish outfits trudged through the thick, sticky mud with plastic bags as boots or in bare feet.

Some left on foot, hiking for hours in the middle of the night to make it to the nearest road and hitch a ride back to civilization. The closest airport is a three hour drive away in Reno.

- 'An amazing burn' -

But for many attendees, even the rain and mud were not enough to spoil the party.

David Packard from the city of South Portland in Maine said other campers let him and his friends into their trailers when it started pouring.

"There was a brief double rainbow that provided us with a lot of energy," Packard said. "My feet are dry and I'm warm. So I'm happy."

Packard also said Burning Man gave him precious time with his brother.

"I had an amazing burn. I got to spend an amazing amount of quality time with my brother," he added. "It was nice to be very close and to get closer this week."

- Abandoned camps -

But David Date, one participant, complained Monday on CNN about people fleeing and leaving gear and trash behind -- breaking the festival's core principle of "no-trace" sustainability.

"They're leaving their entire campsites behind, ditching their cars, their trash, their tents," Date said. "Everyone's got to stick it out."

All events at the annual counterculture gathering were canceled when rain tore down structures for dance parties, art installations and other entertainment.

The festival -- for which tickets cost hundreds of dollars -- culminates each year with the ceremonial burning of a 40-foot (12-meter) effigy.

That had been postponed until Monday evening.

Dozens of vehicles, mostly recreational motor homes, were stuck in the mud on the roads out, presenting a major logistical challenge.

Mobile cellphone trailers have been deployed and the site's wireless internet was opened for public access, but connections remained patchy.

Police have said they were probing one death, without giving further details.

Last year, the festival contended with an intense heat wave and strong winds.

Launched in 1986 in San Francisco, Burning Man aims to be an undefinable event, somewhere between a celebration of counterculture and a spiritual retreat.

It has been held since the 1990s in the Black Rock Desert, a protected area in northwest Nevada, which the organizers are committed to preserving.

As of midday Monday, there were about 64,000 people still remaining at the festival.

U.AlSharif--SF-PST