Locals in Mexico deny knowledge of Fyre Festival 2: “This event does not exist”
Locals and tourism officials on Isla Mujeres, an island off the coast of Mexico where Fyre Festival’s reboot edition is alleged to go ahead this summer, have denied knowing anything about the proposed event.
Speaking to The Guardian, local tourism directorate Edgar Gasca said: “We have no knowledge of this event, nor contact with any person or company about it.”
“For us, this is an event that does not exist,” he added, claiming that organisers have also failed to approach authorities. “It’s very strange, because any manager knows that if you’re going to hold an event, let alone a massive event, you need municipal authorisation.”
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Earlier this week, disgraced Fyre Festival founder and convicted fraudster Billy McFarland revealed that Fyre Festival 2 will go ahead from May 30 – June 2. The announcement post was prefaced with a note reading: “Fyre Festival 2 is real”.
Tickets for the reboot edition went on sale following the announcement, with one luxury package coming in at a cool $1.1 million. Other tickets cost anywhere in the region of $1,400 to $25,000.
According to The Guardian, Gasca and other tourism officials from Isla Mujeres were “blindsided” by Fyre Festival’s reboot announcement this week. Investigations are underway.
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Gasca said that he had spoken to the minister of tourism, as well as the hotels billed as Fyre Festival accommodation, but none knew anything about the projected second edition.
“I think they thought they would just announce it and see if it got traction, then ask for the permits halfway down the path. It’s a bit of a naive way to think,” he said.
The local government has since issued a public denial of knowledge about the proposed event. Fyre organisers told The Guardian that they are in fact in touch with local authorities, claiming that the event will go ahead as planned.
[Via: The Guardian]
Gemma Ross is Mixmag’s Assistant Editor, follow her on Twitter
