Rain, Mud & Rescue: Chris Rock, Diplo & The Hippies Who Saved The Day

Diplo and Chris Rock had a lucky escape from the rain-soaked quagmire at the Burning Man festival after a fan with a truck gave them a lift to the airport. Thunderstorms left tens of thousands of festival attendees stranded on Saturday (September 2) in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert.

Although the site of the event is usually dry and dusty due to its desert location, heavy rain had engulfed it in mud, closing roads in and out. Revelers were told to take shelter in place and conserve their food until flash flood warnings were lifted.

Despite being stranded at the festival, Diplo was determined to make it to Washington D.C. for a gig, and he and Chris Rock got some help from a fan with a vehicle capable of getting through the mud.

“A fan offered Chris Rock and I a ride out of Burning Man in the back of a pickup,” the 44-year-old DJ captioned an Instagram video showing their escape from the ill-fated event.

“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,” he added. “Shoutout to this guy for making the smart purchase of a truck not knowing it was for this exact moment.”

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Diplo, real name is Thomas Wesley Pentz, stated that he and Rock then hitched a ride with “hippies with a van in the next town,” who drove them two hours to the nearest airport.

“They didn’t believe we would walk six miles in the mud,” Diplo added. “No one believed we would get to D.C. for the show tonight. But God did.”

Later on Saturday evening, the star filmed himself in a bathtub after he finished the gig.

Chris Rock wrote on his Instagram Story that “because of the flooding, the port-o-potties reportedly can’t be emptied and because the gates are closed, people can’t get in to fill generators or deliver supplies.”

With flood warnings in place until Monday (September 4), it’s unclear when other Burning Man attendees will get the all-clear to leave or be evacuated. A death that occurred at the festival is reportedly under investigation.