Three people die at Burning Man Festival in Nevada, causes unknown

The annual Burning Man festival in the United States, dubbed "the world's craziest festival," has been marred by three deaths this year, the causes of which remain unclear.  



Characterized by the ritualistic burning of a giant wooden effigy, alongside group sex tents and a variety of art and communal activities, this 40-year-old festival has developed into an annual congregation of artists, hippies and even Silicon Valley billionaires where use of drugs and alcohol is commonplace. 



Every year from late August to early September, people throng to the Black Rock Desert in Nevada for the Burning Man Festival.



This year's nine-day event attracted 70,000 participants, three of whom died with yet unknown causes. 



The first fatality occurred on September 3 when Sampson Tshombe, a man in his 50s, was found unconscious on a road within the festival site.



CPR was performed to no avail and he was pronounced dead by the on-site doctor. 



The next day, Armando Ramirez, 51, underwent a "serious medical emergency" at the event site. He died in an ambulance en route to a hospital. 



On September 5, 60-year-old Craig Mann was found dead in a trailer he shared with his partner.



Burning Man is marked by a history of fatal accidents, averaging one death per year.



Last year, someone was stabbed in the neck inside a tent, and there were previous cases of deaths from drug overdose.