Higher festival costs due to heat: 'shouldn't happen every year'
Due to the tropical heat this weekend, organizers of festivals and sporting events are taking extra measures. Think of extra water points, shaded areas and first aid posts. That costs money, but that does not immediately mean that a ticket will be more expensive.
We have installed extra fans, both in stables and on the stands, there are also extra points where spectators can get water and we have solar pumps, says Gerard van der Werff, financial manager of the equestrian event CHIO in Rotterdam.
The costs of this are around 10,000 euros, according to Van der Werff. That is on a budget of 3.8 million euros. CHIO receives part of the extra costs, such as the sun visors that are distributed to the public, from a sponsor.
"The amount that the organization itself has to pay is manageable, but we are an event that has to pay attention to every euro, so it is still a point," says Van der Werff.
'Ticket not more expensive'It is not the first time that the CHIO organization has had to deal with heat. "A few years ago it was over 30 degrees in Rotterdam the entire weekend, now only one day. Compared to that weekend it is doable, but it remains scorching hot," says Van der Werff.
Fortunately, according to him, it is not the case that because of the extra costs that are needed this year, the tickets will have to be more expensive next year. "We can absorb it, but this should not happen every year."
Pop festivalsPinkpop has also taken measures because of the heat, says spokesperson Lotte Smits. For example, there are extra water points and extra canopies have been made because it was going to be warm. She does not want to say anything about the costs involved.
Last year Pinkpop also incurred extra costs, but then because it had been very rainy for a while. Elephant grass was then laid on wet spots on the site, to make it more accessible for festival-goers.
Heat protocolAt the Festival 'Jordaan in de polder' in Lelystad, which started yesterday and is still going on today, measures have also been taken. For example, a heat protocol was started today. Adjustments have been made to prevent visitors from overheating.
There are extra water taps at the toilets, to prevent queues, extra people have been deployed at the entrance to scan tickets, there are more toilets and the bars have been made longer. The first aid post has been expanded. And sunscreen can be found everywhere on the site.
Sometimes cancelledNot all events will take place, events have been cancelled throughout the country due to the heat. This mainly concerns sporting events, such as marathons in Assen and Sneek. And the running event on the ring of Amsterdam, as part of Festival op de Ring, has been shortened.
But some cultural events cannot go ahead, such as classical concerts in Eindhoven, Maastricht and Roermond. The instruments would not be able to withstand the heat and there are also too many concerns about the health of musicians and the audience.
Organisations are cautious, because in previous years heat has caused dangerous situations at events. Athletes have often ended up in hospital and at well-known events such as the Dam tot Damloop and the Nijmegen Four Days Marches there have even been deaths due to the heat in the past.
InsurersInsurers increasingly want to exclude extreme cases. We do have good event insurance, but a lot of questions are asked about extreme weather and the consequences of extreme showers, for example, to limit the risk, says Van der Werff. But if CHIO were to be cancelled, that would be covered by the insurance, he says.
In this video you see some concertgoers waiting in line for hours for an artist who doesn't exist:
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