The unusual decision in the Netherlands to cancel the Defcon festival. 1

The Defcon.1 festival, the largest hardstyle event in the world that attracts hundreds of thousands of surfers to the Netherlands every year, was canceled today (Friday) due to the extreme heat wave in Europe. Yesterday, the festival, which takes place in Beddinghausen in the Netherlands, announced the cancellation of tickets for those who bought a day ticket or just for the weekend. The production decided to allow entry only to those who bought a ticket for the entire weekend. On Thursday, for the first time in history, a Code Red was announced in the Netherlands – a severe weather warning by the Dutch Meteorological Service. According to the warning, this is a heat wave of up to 40 degrees.

Dozens of Israelis flew to the Netherlands for the festival, some of them hardstyle lovers who fly every year. Last year the Israelis did not take part in the event due to the war with Iran, so many Israelis were impatiently waiting to return to dance at the festival this year.

The festival did not take any risks and announced the cancellation of the remaining days. “We are absolutely devastated by this development. Tens of thousands of Weekend Warriors (the festival’s nickname for revelers) are now staying at the campsite, many of whom have come from far away and have been preparing for this weekend for months. Asking them to come home is the worst-case scenario for us, especially when the festival was fully prepared and all that was left was to welcome them. This is a blow on all levels – not only for the visitors, but also for the artists, staff, creators and everyone who has worked non-stop for the past year to make this edition possible. This is for reality,” reads a statement from Q-Dance, the hardstyle giant that produces the festival.

It also reads: “To all the Weekend Warriors – we are with you. We understand that this is not how you planned for this weekend to look like, and we will do everything we can to help you return home safely. The campsite and part of the festival area will remain open to allow everyone to organize, and all essential facilities will continue to operate. We will refund the full cost of the tickets, and we will also update later on additional compensation. This is not the trip we imagined, but it is our responsibility to take care of you. This is the week Our holiness.”

Maor, who arrived in the Netherlands for the festival and is in the complex, told Mako: “There was no advance warning about the cancellation of the entire festival, there was a partial cancellation for those who bought one-day tickets for Friday and Saturday, but the day tickets for Sunday remained valid and were not canceled. The announcement of a code red in the Netherlands about the weather went out around 9:00 PM (local time), and the announcement of the cancellation of the festival came out shortly after the end of the first day at 11:00 PM.”

Maor added: “We are here about 50 Israelis scattered throughout the campsite. Everyone is frustrated and still can’t digest the news, especially that some are experiencing a second cancellation of the festival, after last year a lot of guys didn’t fly because of the war with the Iranians. Throughout the campsite there were demonstrations by locals, to such an extent that the security was unable to control it. Local people broke things and breached barriers throughout the festival, including the barrier leading to the main stage. Q Dance announced that there will be a full refund on all tickets And there will be more detailed information after the weekend.”