Black Rock Denizens

Who Are the People at Burning Man?

Burning Man is filled with people who contribute to making it the incredible thing in the desert that it is. Many virgins/first-timers are surprised by the amount of infrastructure and organization that they see when they get to the playa. While not an extensive list, here are some of the many people you may see during your week on the playa:

• Black Rock Rangers: Black Rock Rangers are participants who volunteer a portion of their time at Burning Man in service of the safety and well-being of the Burning Man community. Rangers act as non-confrontational community mediators, providers of reliable information, facilitators of public safety and navigators of the edge of chaos.

• Department of Public Works volunteers: is the group that plans, surveys, builds, and takes down the basic infrastructure of our temporary community in the desert. Since the 1997 event the DPW, hand-in-hand with other departments, has instituted the City Plan, through which roads and basic infrastructure throughout the BRC are gridded and built.

  • Black Rock City’s Emergency Services Department (ESD): Volunteers and staff are available before the event officially starts, and are on duty until the last participant leaves. ESD provides fire protection, medical evaluation and treatment, mental health services, an Emergency 911 Dispatch facility, and the communications infrastructure for Black Rock City.

****A note about Law Enforcement at Burning Man: It is real! You will see lots of law enforcement vehicles on your way in to the Burn, and once through the gate, on your way to camp. THEY WILL PULL YOU OVER IF THERE IS ANY REASON FOR THEM TO. Be sure your car is fully up to spec: all lights properly working, license plate unobstructed and lit, all loads properly tied down. DO NOT SPEED. DO NOT RIDE ON THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR VEHICLE. Please click here and here for more information about Law Enforcement at Burning Man.