Diplo and Chris Rock escape Burning Man in a fan’s pickup truck

Following heavy downpour on Friday (1 Sept), Burning Man officials had to close the event’s gates, making it impossible to enter and exit, after the Black Rock Desert in Nevada turned into thick and slippery mud. Organisers launched a survival guide for the people still there, urging them to shelter in place and not try to exit the festival site. All vehicles, other than emergency transport services, were told to not move.

The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office also announced in a statement, “Due to recent rainfall, the Bureau of Land Management and the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office officials have closed the entrance to Burning Man for the remainder of the event. Please avoid traveling to the area; you will be turned around. All event access is closed.”

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In a video posted to his Instagram account on Saturday, Diplo recorded himself in the back of a pickup truck with Chris Rock and other festival-goers, as they made their escape. “A fan offered Chris Rock and I a ride out of Burning Man in the back of a pick up,” he wrote in the video. “After walking 6 miles through the mud.

“I legit walked the side of the road for hours with my thumb out cuz i have a show in dc tonight and didnt want to let yall down. Also shoutout to this guy for making the smart purchase of a truck not knowing it was for this exact moment," the caption read.

Meanwhile, Muse's Matt Bellamy managed to cycle his way out of the desert.