Wettest Picnic since records began

AS A festival, Electric Picnic has generally had good weather, but yesterday its luck ran out. Heavy rain and wind in the morning turned the already sodden arena into a veritable mud bath. It was particularly difficult terrain for parents with buggies, having to negotiate their way around ground that resembled a first World War battlefield.

Though Friday and Saturday were relatively fair, yesterday’s weather compounded the problems caused by torrential downpours in the days leading up to the festival.

The family campsite emptied out early yesterday. Some left because of school this morning, but others due to the difficult conditions. However, most had nothing but good to say about the children’s facilities – and, particularly, the Soul Kids area.

Malcolm Blanch, who took his nine-month-old son Matthew to the festival, decided to leave yesterday evening.

“We were 50:50 on whether to stay or not, but it’s too hard with a small child,” he said. “We tried to pick up our tents before the rain arrived but we weren’t successful.”

Pat Lennon, who brought two children to the festival, also packed up yesterday evening. He said: “We had two good days. We could have expected worse. I would have taken this at the beginning of the festival.”

Garvin O’Toole, who took his two children, Megan and Evan, said: “We were thinking about staying but . . . There was a gap in the weather so we took the tents down. It’s unfortunate ... You can’t control it, but that’s what Ireland’s like.”

On the bright side, the wind turbine that was erected on site whirred constantly throughout the festival, keeping the organisers’ carbon count down.