Organizers of first Bend ‘Water Lantern Festival’ vow to help clean up Deschutes mess; BPRD says no more permits

(Update: Cleanup continues; KTVZ.COM Poll)

Mayor calls it 'upsetting'; Bend Park & Rec 'disappointed' lanterns weren't confined as planned

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – Organizers of Bend’s first – and quite possibly last – Water Lantern Festival said Tuesday they are working with community groups to clean up the Deschutes River and remove dozens of lanterns that got away and sank, prompting an outcry from river-lovers and Bend Park and Rec to say it won’t approve any future park reservations.

Bend's inaugural Water Lantern Festival, held Friday night at Riverbend Park, cost participants $27 and $41 at the event.

 It included access to food trucks in the festival area, a floating lantern kit, LED candle and a promise of "lantern retrieval and water clean-up."

On a "Frequently Asked Questions" page, organizers of the events, held in numerous cities around the country, say people cannot bring their own lanterns, as the ones they use are are custom-designed and patented to "ensure they remain afloat for our team to collect them following the event."

A representative of the group 'Loot the Deschutes' told us Sunday they found 85 lanterns on the river bottom at McKay Park, along with wooden platforms. They shared several photos and images on their Instagram page.

 Critics commenting in a post on Reddit's Bend subreddit said the festival left many battery-operated lanterns in the river and expressed dismay at how it was allowed to happen.

Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler weighed in on the conversation, calling what occurred "definitely upsetting." She said the company that organized the festival "wasn't obligated to inform city government," but said the event could be seen as "recreational littering."

The Lantern Festival had a rental reservation with the Bend Park & Recreation District for the event at Riverbend Park, BPRD Communication and Community Relations Manager Julie Brown told NewsChannel 21 on Sunday.

"They went through the same process as all public event organizers – completing a request form, submitting a logistics plan, site map, and appropriate insurance," Brown said. "They also held their pre-event meeting with a BPRD staff person to review all details. As is always our process, we will conduct a debrief meeting with the event organizer.

"BPRD is disappointed that the organizer’s plan to confine the lanterns to specific area was not successful," Brown added. "We also appreciate the community members’ efforts over the weekend to remove debris that was found in the river."

A festival representative told NewsChannel 21 on Tuesday, “This was a very rare event, as the water was just moving faster than we had anticipated and lanterns were tipping over our line of protection, causing some of them to flip and sink.”

“We are doing our best to get the river back to its original condition,” she added. “We appreciate your care and concern for the Deschutes River. It was a very unfortunate accident that occurred this weekend during the lantern launch.”

“We are working with local groups to help clean the river, and are grateful for their expertise and care for the river,” the official said. Another representative said Wednesday that the cleanup "is in the process and gets better every day!"

However, Bend Park and Rec issued a statement and posted it to Instagram on Tuesday, saying they “notified organizers that any future event proposals for the Water Lantern Festival will not be approved.”

“This is due to the issues that arose with containing the lanterns during the event, as well as the lack of communication, lack of remorse and lack of clean-up efforts,” the park district said, adding: “The inaction doesn’t align with our community values.”

The BPRD decision drew a quick “thank you” reply from Mayor Kebler, also thanking the community members who helped clean up the river afterward.