Vendors and laborers based in the Bahamas have described debts they're owed by Fyre Festival, the luxury music festival that collapsed spectacularly in April, in a new report by local newspaper The Tribune.
Local business owners described the significant sums of money they're allegedly owed – at least two debts exceed $100,000 – as well as the significant time they invested in the project. “I had about 130 people... sometimes working from 8 a.m. until 4 a.m. the next morning,” said Brian Lloyd, operator of Multi-Talented Construction.
None of the vendors have been able to get in contact with anyone from Fyre Festival. In May, festival co-founder Billy McFarland revealed on a leaked conference call that Fyre's own employees would not be paid.
Still, some remain hopeful that their money will come. “At the end of the day, they still could have said something so that we could work it out," said Maryann Rolle, a restaurant owner who claims to have provided 1,000 meals a day for the festival.
"We allowed crooks into this country. I only hope to God that this whole thing gets sorted out because people need their money.”
The Bahamas's Department of Labor has announced an investigation into Fyre Festival, which may include officials in the country's former government. It will join the FBI's ongoing probe into the botched event, and six separate lawsuits.