Cacophony Society

Revelers stuck in the mud for days at the Burning Man festival in Nevada finally began heading home on Sept. 4.

With the sun now shining on the colorful makeshift community of 70,000 people called Black Rock City, the roads opened in the afternoon, kicking off the official exit process known as the "Exodus."

Police in the US state of Nevada were investigating a death at the Burning Man festival, where thousands of people were ordered to shelter in place after heavy rains turned the desert site into a mud pit and forced organizers to close the gates.

Larry Harvey, the man who founded the popular Burning Man countercultural festival, died April 28 after suffering a massive stroke in early April, event organizers said. He was 70.

Every year people from around the globe rush to a majestic place full of creativity and beauty called Burning Man. One of the roots of the annual event now known as Burning Man began as a bonfire ritual on the summer solstice in 1986 when Larry Harvey, Jerry James, and a few friends met on Baker Beach in San Francisco and burned a 2.7-meter wooden man as well as a smaller wooden dog.