Coachella hit by strong winds
Strong, violent winds forced at least one cancellation and disrupted the festival and campgrounds over the weekend — EDM artist Anyma’s scheduled main‑stage closing set was cancelled because of the conditions. (Billboard reported Anyma’s cancellation and the Los Angeles Times described the winds as disrupting both festival operations and campgrounds.) (billboard.com) (latimes.com)
Strong winds upended Coachella’s opening weekend in Indio, canceling Anyma’s Friday-night main-stage closer and battering parts of the festival campgrounds. (billboard.com) Anyma had been scheduled to start at midnight on Friday, April 10, on the Coachella Stage, but organizers called off the set about 15 minutes after its scheduled start. Coachella’s official schedule listed him on the Friday lineup for Weekend 1, and Billboard reported he remained booked for the second weekend. (coachella.com) (billboard.com) The weather problem was not limited to one stage. The Los Angeles Times reported that violent gusts tore through campgrounds, knocked down tents and canopies, and disrupted festival operations across the Empire Polo Club on Friday night. (latimes.com) Air regulators had warned before the worst of the weekend. The South Coast Air Quality Management District said on April 10 that windblown dust and high particle pollution were expected from 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday morning in the Coachella Valley, with unhealthy conditions possible at times and gusts up to 50 miles per hour. (aqmd.gov 1) (aqmd.gov 2) The National Weather Service also issued an Air Quality Alert for the Coachella Valley and nearby San Gorgonio Pass on Friday afternoon because of harmful particle pollution from windblown dust. That matters at a festival built around long outdoor days, overnight camping, and late-night sets that peak when dust and wind can worsen. (weather.gov) (coachella.com) Coachella is used to heat, dust, and desert wind, but outright cancellations are less common. The Los Angeles Times reported the festival draws about 125,000 people each weekend, which means weather disruptions can hit performances, campsites, traffic flow, and basic crowd movement all at once. (latimes.com) Anyma said after the cancellation that he and his team had spent a year building the show and that the decision was made with safety as the priority. By Saturday, the story of opening night was no longer just the lineup, but how much of the desert had blown into it. (billboard.com)
