Festival-goers stranded in Bahamas
British festival-goers are among thousands left stranded on an island in the Bahamas by the organisers of a luxury event, which was cancelled at the last minute.
American rapper Ja Rule and his business partner Billy McFarland, who promoted the Fyre Festival, are now being sued for $100 million by one of the attendees for fraud, negligent representation and breach of contract.
The pair have apologised and promised refunds to all ticket-holders.
Daniel Jung, who filed the lawsuit, has accused them of ‘an outrageous failure to prepare’.
Ticket holders, who had paid from $1,200 to over $100,000 to the two-weekend event on Great Exuma island arrived to find that there wasn’t enough accommodation to house them all and there were insufficient provisions.
Tents – advertised as ‘beach cabanas’ – had not been erected, guests’ luggage went missing and the ‘gourmet’ meals advertised consisted of cheese sandwiches.
After hearing of the lack of facilities for festival goers the government reportedly cancelled some flights to the island, peformers pulled out and the organisers pulled the plug.
"The festival’s lack of adequate food, water, shelter, and medical care created a dangerous and panicked situation among attendees – suddenly finding themselves stranded on a remote island without basic provisions – that was closer to The Hunger Games or Lord of the Flies than Coachella," the court filing said.
"The Fyre Festival was nothing more than a get-rich-quick scam from the very beginning," it alleged.
In a letter posted on its website over the weekend, Fyre organisers said ‘the team was overwhelmed’.
"They simply weren’t ready for what happened next, or how big this thing would get," it said.
Ja Rule also posted on social media that he was "heartbroken", insisting the event was not a scam.
"I truly apologise as this is not my fault… but I’m taking responsibility," he tweeted.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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