After the attendees of Electric Picnic festival in Stradbally, Ireland made their way home on September 3rd, the festival site’s tents remained standing, awaiting the arrival of hundreds of refugees that will be housed on the site from September 5th.
According to BBC News, “The Irish government has signed a contract for the use of the site at Stradbally. The site will house 750 people for the duration of the six-week contract, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) has said.”
The department expects that the site will operate at full capacity just 2 days after welcoming refugees.
The Electric Picnic Festival site will provide hot meals and water, as well as hot shower facilities, toilets and an on-site paramedic.
Electric Picnic is an arts and music festival occurring annually since 2004. Every year, (excluding 2020 and 2021 due to the Coronavirus pandemic) Electric Picnic offers a vast selection of music, art, theatre and comedy acts, as well as food and holistic health merchandise. With an average of 70,000 attendees each year, Electric Picnic is Ireland’s biggest music festival, making it the perfect place to host a large number of refugees and those in need. The 2023 lineup included acts such as Billie Eilish, The Killers and Irish-born Niall Horan.
Well, that’s a wrap everyone!
Thank you all for an incredible weekend. See you again next year! #EP23 #EP24 #ElectricPicnic pic.twitter.com/lr94WpvTEU
— Electric Picnic (@EPfestival) September 4, 2023
The Irish government has provided housing to over 92,400 refugees since February 2021. 69,518 of these being people seeking refuge after fleeing the war in Ukraine.
A department spokesperson told BBC News “The summer months have seen an increase in the number of arrivals from Ukraine, with more than 10,000 people fleeing here since 1 May, an average of around 650 people per week”.
The Irish government has also gathered additional accommodation from local student housing and the tourism sector, however, these housing options are already at capacity. It is due to this, that tented accommodation is now going to be the first option for new arrivals from Ukraine and anyone seeking asylum in Ireland.
“A small number of new arrivals have already been placed in tents, and this will increase as new locations for tented facilities come on stream. Vulnerable arrivals will be prioritised for any non-tented accommodation available.” – BBC News
In addition to the Electric Picnic festival site, Croke Park, the Aviva Stadium, Dublin Airport and various ex-military camps are also being used to accommodate refugees that have arrived in Ireland over the past year.
Tickets for Electric Picnic 2024 will be available for purchase on September 8th at 9am on their official website.
