At the end the sun came out again – now the metal fans say goodbye to the mud bath of the Wacken Festival. Although many did not come to the site despite valid tickets, the event remained peaceful.
When the weather was better, tens of thousands of metal fans celebrated on the last day of the heavy metal festival in Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein. More than 60,000 visitors experience a final evening of music before the event officially ends at 2 a.m.
Appeal from the police to leave
Before the departure, the police appealed to the fans to keep an eye on the departure information from the organizers. “All participants should remain on the camping site with their vehicles until they leave and not park their vehicles outside the site so that they can supposedly leave faster later.” This should prevent parking on the rescue routes in the village and the surrounding streets.
Those departing should also ensure that they are sober and not under the influence of narcotics. “On the day of departure, the police will carry out priority traffic checks.” Vehicles should be cleared of the coarsest mud and dirt beforehand in order to prevent dirt on the road and damage to your own car.
Wacken Open Air
Rain, mud and arrival stop
Police and ambulance happy
There was positive news from the police and rescue services. “That was by far the safest Wacken Open Air – also in relation to the somewhat reduced number of participants, it somehow welded us together,” said Chief Police Director Frank Matthiesen. Officials registered very few crimes. The rescue teams also report a calm course.
Weather made for chaotic conditions
This year, the Open Air started under chaotic conditions after a lot of rain on arrival. Due to the space conditions, the organizers had imposed an admission stop on Wednesday for safety reasons. 85,000 fans were originally expected, the festival had been sold out for a year.
The stop had caused frustration and anger among those who had been rejected in the past few days. These fans should get the ticket price refunded, and a right of first refusal for the coming year is also being discussed. These measures will cost around seven million euros, which corresponds to a third of the income. According to festival co-founder Thomas Jensen, the economic situation cannot yet be finally assessed.
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