Dear Fireflies, We realize that not everyone had context about the PSA that went out yesterday. We'd like to provide you with that context and some additional information. On Burn Night last year at Element 11 (a Utah regional burn), a participant willingly avoided Rangers and Perimeter and ran into the burn to deliberately end his life. The rest of the participants had no recourse to stop him. As all burners do, we collectively feel the sorrow for his loss and for the loss to his family, friends, and extended burner family as if it were our own. We also recognize and share the pain of the event organizers and volunteers who were unable to help this man. This rarely happens at burns, and has never happened at Firefly, but because it so rarely happens and is such a tragedy, it is a difficult topic for all to discuss. If you feel overwhelmed *for any reason* and think that hurting yourself, or ending your life, is the best answer, please know that people are here for you. We want you to stay and be our community, our family. The loss of one of us is a loss to all of us. Let us help you. Rangers, Medical, and Sanctuary are among the different types of volunteers who can assist you in obtaining the resources you need. We realize it can be difficult to believe that a whole community cares about you. This is why we maintain that a community-wide approach is best. So bear with us as we bring this subject to light. Reach out to your friends and have this conversation with them. Start a thread on the Firefly Blink list and share your thoughts and feelings with the community. The Firefly Safety Teams are volunteers. We have no authority to restrain anyone. The most significant number of injuries in tackling runners comes from would-be rescuers. And the size of the fire limits our ability to get too close. In the event that someone is committed to running into a fire we simply cannot put our own lives at risk. We are effective most when we have a relationship with you, fellow participants. We have no authority other than what you give us, and we take that responsibility seriously. Though we all joke about "safety third" and, as a culture, like to push our own boundaries, the Firefly community remains committed to preventing the loss of any participants for any reason. We need to be aware that not everyone feels as we do. We need to take our neighbors, our friends, our strangers into our fold. We need to protect ourselves, and those around us. If you would like to discuss this further, contact -Medical at medical@fireflyartscollective.org -Sanctuary at sanctuary@fireflyartscollective.org -Rangers at rangers@fireflyartscollective.org -Fire Art Safety Team at fast@fireflyartscollective.org On behalf of the Firefly Safety Teams, Firefly Medical Legion