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File photo: Fans at III Points Music Festival at Mana Wynwood in 2021.<\/p>\n
Miami Herald File<\/p>\n
The opening of the III Points fest sounded a sour note for thousands of fans who poured into Wynwood for a weekend of music only to experience ticketing issues, delays and chaos among the crowd.<\/p>\n
Problems on Friday night with new wristbands triggered long lines and safety issues at what could be the final run for the alternative music festival at its home for a decade, Mana Wynwood. Rainy conditions didn\u2019t help matters, and more stormy weather is forecast again for the second night of the fest.<\/p>\n
The two-day music festival runs through early Sunday morning and was expecting about 40,000 fans a day.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Headed to Wynwood this weekend? Get ready for traffic-palooza<\/a><\/p>\n This year, III Points rolled out a new ticketing system with radio frequency wristbands. Ticketing tech issues led to hours-long lines and frustrated fans.<\/p>\n The wristbands use an embedded chip that communicates wirelessly with \u201ca special scanner, which experienced unexpected technical problems during will-call pickup, and caused delays in entry<\/a>,\u201d festival organizers said Saturday in a statement on Instagram.<\/p>\n Beyond the long wait, festivalgoers say the delays caused unsafe crowd conditions, and led many to exit the event\u2019s opening night.<\/p>\n \u201cI witnessed people get trampled, people passing out and crying because they couldn\u2019t breathe and couldn\u2019t get out of that mob,\u201d Maria Paula A. commented under III Points\u2019 Oct. 17 post.<\/p>\n \u201cI was unable to move for 40 minutes and tried to get out of the crowd three times, with no staff members managing or controlling the situation\u201d wrote Daniel Cort\u00e9s, who added that after a four-hour wait, he \u201cabandoned the so-called \u2018line\u2019 for my own safety.\u201d<\/p>\n Another festival frequenter, Gloria Gabrielle, said she had \u201cnever seen something like this in my life.\u201d<\/p>\n Performers weren\u2019t spared either, with several forced to perform in the rain without covering for both artists and their equipment.<\/p>\n A social media clip shows Brazil-based DJ Roddy Lima dangling a pair of soaked headphones<\/a> while his turntables got soaked in the background. British DJ Ben Sterling,<\/a> who performed at the event\u2019s main stage Friday night, paused his set to tell fans \u201cthe rain [expletive] the deck.\u201d<\/p>\n III Points says it\u2019s fixing the issues for the festival\u2019s final night.<\/p>\n \u201cMiami, we are preparing to serve you today,\u201d the festival announced in an Oct. 17 Instagram statement detailing new safety and ticket measures. \u201cYour experience is our priority, and we want to make sure you feel heard.\u201d<\/p>\n The festival says it\u2019s replacing all the wristbands with an easy-access barcode for general admission will-call purchasers, and is adding additional staff and ticket lanes. It\u2019s also clearing the event\u2019s main entrance area to avoid overcrowding and \u201cmake more room for queues and flow.\u201d<\/p>\n The festival also says it\u2019s all ears for attendees who didn\u2019t make it inside the venue Friday night, adding that staff is \u201cactively processing and responding to all refund requests and feedback about your experience last night.\u201d<\/p>\n Festival organizers are asking fans to reach out to info@iiipoints.com and provide their order number \u201cto find the right solution for you.\u201d<\/p>\n One issue the festival may not have control over: the weather. There\u2019s a 90% chance of rain in Miami on Saturday night.<\/p>\n Ticket problems and rain aside, this could be the last III Points at the site.<\/p>\n Last month, billionaire and Citadel CEO Ken Griffin bought Mana Wynwood<\/a> for $1.1 billion and then announced the land would be donated for a new Carnegie Mellon University Miami campus. Construction could begin next year before a 2028 opening.<\/p>\n