The festival will be re-devised as two separate special events.
Just two weeks out from this year’s Rainbow Serpent Festival, organisers have decided to pull the plug on the event.
The festival site in Lexton was hit by bushfires in late December, and although the majority of the site’s infrastructure was not affected, the blaze did cause some damage.
After assessing the impact of the recent fires and meeting with the CFA, Victoria Police, Forest Fire Management Victoria and Pyrenees Council staff to evaluate safety concerns, the organisers decided to cancel the festival.
“As much as we all love RSF, the health and safety of patrons and crew is our number one priority,” said the festival organisers in a statement on Facebook. “This is key to any decisions made and of course, we always consider our impact and commitment to the land and the local community.”
“Due to a number of safety concerns stemming from the fire that affected the site and the wider bushfire impacts across the country, it was agreed that holding RSF over the scheduled weekend in Lexton simply isn’t the right thing to do.”
While Rainbow Serpent won’t go ahead as planned, the organisers hope to host two separate special events in its place.
The first, Rainbow Serpent Festival – Urban Edition, is scheduled for Sunday January 26 in Melbourne’s CBD while the Rainbow Serpent Festival 2020 – Regen Edition looks to take place over the Easter weekend in Lexton.
While alternative plans are still being sorted, the festival organisers hope to keep as much of the original lineup intact as possible, as well as inviting some special guests along for the new events.
Ticketholders can either use their tickets to access the two alternative events or receive a full refund.
See Rainbow Serpent’s full statement below:
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