A rural Nevada county has given final go-aheads to two events centered around a “Storm Area 51” drive that began as an internet joke.
Lincoln County commissioners accepted a promoter’s plan to host 5,000 people at a music festival in tiny Hiko, and an inn owner’s request to let 10,000 camp on her property in Rachel, the town closest to the once top-secret Area 51 military base.
The board last month drafted an emergency declaration, with the sheriff planning to team resources with the state and neighboring counties ahead of Sept. 20-22 events inspired by the internet invitation.
Commissioners and Sheriff Kerry Lee say promoters’ plans to bring in food, water and entertainment could help people survive in the desolate desert nearly three hours’ drive from Las Vegas.