Coachella 2022: COVID-19 still a concern for festivalgoers, though most go sans mask
The COVID-19 pandemic postponed the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2020 and 2021, but it clearly could not stop people from dancing and having a good time this year.
Face masks were not a popular accessory either weekend, but a minority of festivalgoers still donned them en route to concerts or while in crowds.
Even late-night talk show host Jimmy Fallon referenced a Desert Sun article in his "Tonight Show" opening monologue on Friday, reporting that a 77% week-over-week increase in COVID-19 cases in the Coachella Valley following the first weekend of Coachella.
"Everyone there is like, 'I can't believe this is happening when we're doing everything we're not supposed to do,'" Fallon said on Friday.
There was no vaccine, testing or masking requirement set for Coachella, or the upcoming Stagecoach country music festival. However, rapid 15-minute antigen COVID-19 testing services by Guardian Testing were available at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden during Weekend 2. Testing was also available at the Camping Hub during Weekend 1.
Attendee Julia Fieldman, from San Francisco, said on Saturday it felt "very nice" to be out and about at Coachella, even though it was impossible to forget about the virus.
"I did wear a mask on the plane and on the shuttle I took in here, so it's definitely still a concern," Fieldman said, who was mask-less while waiting in line to explore beauty brand Pleasing's pop-up store. "But being fully vaccinated, I know that I've done all that I can do. I've protected myself the best that I possibly can."
Having the festival outdoors also made her feel "a lot better" about being around large crowds, she said, and kept her anxiety down. After two years of living through the pandemic, she feels like it's time to "start living" once again.
Airlines and public transit have been returning to some semblance of normalcy as they announced they were dropping their face mask requirement given a federal judge's April 18 ruling in Florida and the White House response to it.
Though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will no longer enforce the masking order, it still "continues to recommend that people wear masks in indoor public transportation settings at this time," said a statement on the CDC's website.
But some festivalgoers still weren't ready to ditch their masks in various settings. Los Angeles residents Kevin Nunes and Berenice Ramirez were making their way across the festival grounds on Saturday with black masks on.
Nunes felt comfortable around the crowds because he had a mask on, he said, and he was fully vaccinated and boosted. He also recovered from COVID-19 in December.
"I feel like I'm pretty good," he said.
Ramirez said it was "definitely scary" being around so many people with "COVID still very active," but she and Nunes were trying to stay on top of hand-washing and keeping away from crowds as best as they could. Ramirez had hand sanitizer and tissues in her clear fanny pack, which they used any time they used a restroom or before they ate.
"We've been cautious about [COVID] and aware of it, but at the end of the day, we do want to have fun," Ramirez said.
Their face covering also had an added bonus, Nunes said: it helped protect them from inhaling the desert dust.
Ema Sasic covers health in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at ema.sasic@desertsun.com or on Twitter @ema_sasic.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Coachella 2022: COVID-19 still a concern, though masks are rare
