Download is a rock music festival in the UK that on June 18th will run a pilot to test the feasibility of large-scale music events.
Initially announcing its cancellation in March, the three-day festival has since revealed its return, and according to the BBC it’s participating in the UK Government’s Event Research Programme (ERP).
It will have a crowd of 10,000 people that must provide a negative lateral flow and PCR test to be allowed entrance. It’s confirmed that once inside the festival site, attendees will not need to wear a mask or have any social distancing restrictions.
Researchers from Public Health England monitor for possible transmissions, and those who attend will have to take another test shortly after the event, so if there are any new COVID-19 cases, they can be tracked.
The festival takes place at Donington Park starting on June 18th, and will be the first UK test event where attendees can camp on site. Previous festival test events in the UK were one day only, and everyone attending had to leave the site once the music finished.
Previous events in the ERP pilots showed positive results, finding only 15 new COVID-19 cases out of the 58,000 attendees. The results from those other tests have so far generated evidence that has also deemed mass events to be equally safe as shopping or eating in a restaurant.
Although the music at this has no link to electronic music or DJ culture, the finding of the trial will have a huge influence on all UK festivals, plus other parts of the world who also take guidance from the UK’s findings.
H/T: BBC
