A fierce dust storm engulfed the Black Rock Desert on Saturday, reducing visibility to less than a foot in some areas and complicating final setup efforts just before the gates of Burning Man 2025 were set to open.
With thick clouds of alkaline dust sweeping across the playa, early arrivals shared videos showing near-whiteout conditions, toppled structures, and festivalgoers hunkered down in goggles and scarves.
Despite the chaos, some essential systems remained operational, including Starlink internet, which several users credited for maintaining communications in the whiteout. “Looks like @Starlink is still working in this insane duststorm at Burning Man,” one user posted alongside images from a vehicle, barely able to see beyond the windshield. “Visibility was less than 1 ft in front of us.”…