Travis County officials have cancelled Levitation 2016 due to public safety concerns regarding this weekend’s forecasted dangerous weather and previous weather-caused complications with the festival grounds.
“Event organizers and the County have worked together to ensure the safety of this year’s festival, but this weekend’s weather forecast now includes dangerous conditions,” explained Travis County Fire Marshal Tony Callaway. “We know that many festival goers travel long distances to attend Levitation, but event organizers and County officials agree that the safety of festival attendees is our number one priority.”
The 2015 Levitation Festival included severe weather warnings, but the festival went on as planned. The difference between 2015 and 2016 is the severity of the predicted storms, which are forecasted to include high wind, large hail and tornado warnings, combined with high water levels along the Colorado River from recent heavy rain and flooding.
Following this announcement, the festival must evacuate the site, which means that staff and equipment are scheduled to leave the grounds. Event organizers would have no opportunity to continue the festival later in the weekend, even if the weather drastically improves on Sunday.
Event organizers are working to keep everyone updated. Please see their additional information at: http://levitation-austin.com/.
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Submitted by: Travis County Emergency Services PIO Lisa Block, Tel: 512-854-7954
