Stagecoach briefly evacuated after winds
- Stagecoach organizers temporarily evacuated the Empire Polo Club in Indio around 8 p.m. Saturday after high winds swept through the festival, halting performances and clearing crowds. - The festival resumed about an hour later, but Riley Green and Journey were dropped from Saturday’s schedule and Lainey Wilson’s headlining set moved to 10:30 p.m. - The disruption came under a Coachella Valley wind advisory warning of 25-35 mph winds and gusts up to 50 mph. (abc7.com)
Stagecoach briefly cleared the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday night after high winds forced organizers to stop the festival around 8 p.m. (abc7.com) (aol.com) An emergency message on the Mane Stage screens told fans the festival had been postponed until further notice and directed them to the nearest exit. The Stagecoach app then told attendees at 8:42 p.m. that crews were preparing the site to reopen safely. (aol.com) (abc7.com) The gates reopened shortly before 9 p.m., and Stagecoach posted revised set times around 9:30 p.m. Lainey Wilson, Saturday’s headliner, told fans she would take the stage at 10:30 p.m. instead of her original slot. (aol.com) (abc7.com) The reshuffle came with cancellations. Riley Green’s Mane Stage set and Journey’s Mustang Stage performance were removed from the Saturday lineup after the evacuation. (aol.com) (rollingstone.com) The weather threat had been flagged before the shutdown. A National Weather Service wind advisory for the Coachella Valley warned of west winds of 25 to 35 mph, gusts up to 50 mph, and isolated gusts to 65 mph through nearby passes. (kesq.com) (abc7.com) Dust was part of the problem too. South Coast Air Quality Management District advisories warned of windblown dust and particle pollution in the Coachella Valley through Sunday morning, with unhealthy conditions possible in parts of the region. (aqmd.gov 1) (aqmd.gov 2) Festivalgoers described a fast change in conditions as palm trees bent in the wind and people streamed out of the grounds. Some attendees told the Los Angeles Times they supported the evacuation, while others complained that the closure wiped out the sets they came to see. (aol.com) Stagecoach still completed its second night with Wilson’s delayed headlining set, and Sunday’s program remained on track with Post Malone scheduled to close the festival. The weekend’s biggest disruption ended up being weather, not the lineup. (abc7.com) (latimes.com)
