The number of portable toilets installed proved insufficient for the number of attendees. The toilets and showers soon became unusable and overflowing, and male guests resorted to urinating on the side of the toilets or behind vendor stalls. Excrement from the toilets flowed into the mud pits and camping areas, mixing with water from the broken pipes. Many attendees began jumping into the mud pits and water troughs to stay cool in the heat, unaware of the contamination; this led to many cases of trench mouth and trench foot. The Oneida County Health Department analyzed the free drinking water, finding it to be contaminated with E. coli and other bacteria.
I'll bet you a soda that there were people infected at that event who went right to the playa. The entire place is gonna be fecal-flavor biohazard gumbo until it dries out, then people will get infected from the dessicated viruses rehydrating in their lungs years from now.
None of those died instantly. Imagine blinking your eyes, knowing that they'll close, then open again. Only your eyes never open again, and you didn't even notice!
Edit: I must have been very tired when I wrote that first sentence. Of course they died instantly!
For all burning man's many many many many systemic flaws, the organizers tend to be pretty competent (if only for legal liability reasons). And I can't think of any situation where ANYONE would be told "just piss on the ground". Latrine pits are a thing and are pretty much bog (hee hee) standard solutions.
everything is flooded - the pits are flooded - the only things not flooded are the portashitters. and they're overflowing because the shit-sucking-transport can't get to them due to all the flooding.
On one of the news casts I watched. No one can drive in and out right now and that includes the trucks that empty the bathrooms which are quickly filling up