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When the student behind the online sensation "Storm Area 51" announced his intention to organize an extraterrestrial festival in the Nevada desert, the organizers tried to dispel fears of seeing thousands of people overwhelm the resources of a small town without a shop or gas station.
Or, as they say in the Washington Post: This is not Fyre Festival 2.0.
But it was before a public scramble between the organizers made it even more strange the story of the craze for Area 51, several months after the meteoric rise of a joke event on Facebook which has gathered more than 2 million people allegedly attacked a secret air force base. for extraterrestrial rumors. Dueling charges of dishonesty and sabotage derailed "Alienstock" – a Woodstock for extraterrestrial observers – that creator Matty Roberts promoted as an alternative programming to any plan to storm the base on September 20 despite warnings from officials.
A little over a week from the event, Roberts and the host city's website compare Alienstock to the Fyre Festival, which was to take place in April and May 2017 in the Bahamas, but has become synonymous with "Epic failure". leads to a conviction for fraud. Roberts drew his name and support from the three-day rally in Rachel, Nevada, but the owner of a motel in the city that had registered as a partner plans to continue.
"There is no security that can be really promised," Roberts told The Post on Tuesday, calling the event a "humanitarian disaster." "I did not feel comfortable even inviting my friends and family to this event, not to mention those thousands of strangers."
For Roberts, everything has collapsed unexpectedly. But the city of Rachel – where locals would be less than satisfied with the media swarm "Storm Area 51" – expressed less surprise.
The result was "just as we predicted," says the city's website in red letters. Officials in two counties prepared for the emergency declaration earlier, not knowing how many people could descend to rural Nevada.
"If an event always happens, it will be a pretty sad affair without a band, very few infrastructure and a lot of unfortunate campers," the statement said, urging everyone to stay out of the way.
Roberts and his colleague Frank DiMaggio, organizer, blame their former partner in the field, to Rachel: the owner of the hostel who, according to them, took care of most of the logistics and became more and more evasive as the big date approaches. The small owner of A & # 39; Inn, Connie West, accuses them of treason, claiming that she has put in place the necessary infrastructure and support staff, confirmed the interpreters and sold 2 400 campsites.
Two documents circulated in a local press show as proof of his efforts were apparently completed the day Roberts said he withdrew. A check for $ 17,500 for security services is dated September 8; as well as West's signing of a medical services agreement.
West did not immediately respond to a request for information from The Post.
Roberts, a 21-year-old from Bakersfield, California, propelled to celebrity status by the Area 51 phenomenon, said that he had been cold-blooded after DiMaggio, a more experienced planner arrived there less than two weeks, judged the event beyond help. Previously, Roberts ran the festival with another student.
"We started asking difficult questions that these kids did not know how to ask," DiMaggio said.
Samuel Scheller, CEO of Guardian Elite Medical Services, told The Post that his group provides Alienstock with 16 medical staff, a first aid tent, ambulances and more than half a ton of supplies. Local press briefing Action 13 News also confirmed further preparations: agreements with companies to provide 130 portable toilets and police officers to more than 250 first state and local government stakeholders.
But DiMaggio and Roberts say that no proof of preparation has materialized when they pressed West before separating from her. They told The Post that Guardian Medical had asked DiMaggio for help because West had "lost control" of the event.
Scheller confirmed that he had connected West and DiMaggio, another of his clients, because he thought that it could be an "excellent partnership" (DiMaggio's was denied a permit for his competitor event Peacestock 51 in the area). When asked if he had any doubts about West's preparations, Scheller declined to comment.
Roberts, who was expecting about 10,000 people in Alienstock before his breakup with West, said the quarrel did not mean that fans in Area 51 should stay home. They can travel to Las Vegas instead for an "Area 51 Celebration" at a downtown event center. The organizers of this September 19th meeting invited Roberts on Monday to join them.
We do not know how many people could still come to Rachel. West, who sometimes cries in tears over Action 13 News, says Alienstock is still active.
"She says they're coming anyway," DiMaggio said. "I really hope they will not be."
– Hannah Knowles / The Washington Post
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