Debris litters beach after DeLuna Fest weekend - Pensacola News Journal
As work crews quickly broke down DeLuna Fest stages, packed up barricades and loaded up scaffolding on Monday, Josalan Credlebaugh dug in the sand on the edge of the water on Pensacola Beach and pulled up a discarded mini-vodka bottle.
"Look what I found," she exclaimed.
Trash is not what the 5-year-old and her family from Dayton, Ohio, thought they'd find on their first trip to Pensacola Beach.
"It's very disappointing to see the trash," said Josalan's mother, Julie Credlebaugh, 30, pointing to another tiny liquor bottle poking out of the sand, along with plastic straws and cups and even a discarded sock.
It was clear, DeLuna Fest fans did not read the sign at Lazy Days beach chair and umbrella rental at the Hilton that stated: "Leave only your footprints."
Trash from the three-day concert was strewn down the beach and even buried in the sand late Monday and included plastic water bottles, Jell-O shot cups, duct tape, DeLuna Fest beverage signs, plastic utensils, glass liquor bottles, T-shirts, a vendor's event receipt, dozens of cigarette packages and countless cigarette butts.
Toilet paper sprayed out onto the crowd Friday night by electronic music artist Girl Talk was mixed in with all the trash in front of The Dock lounge.
Hopefully, the Credlebaugh family will get a chance to see the beach in its pristine glory before they leave by the weekend.
At least, that's what Five Flags Tourism Group's managing partner Scott Mitchell promised.
"By Bands on the Beach, you won't even know we were out here," Mitchell said about today's 7 p.m. weekly concert series at Casino Beach, sponsored by the Santa Rosa Island Authority.
Mitchell said it's in his contract to put the beach back the way it was before DeLuna Fest, which began Friday and ran through Sunday night.
The Island Authority staff is expected to meet with DeLuna Fest officials today to make sure everything is buttoned-up to the Island Authority's expectations.
Last year, it took a few days to return the beach to normal. But last year, the trash was isolated to the Casino Beach area, not spread a quarter of a mile down the beach.
"DeLuna Fest will clean it up, or we'll do it and send them a bill," said Santa Rosa Island Authority Executive Director W. A. "Buck" Lee.
With work moving quickly on Monday to pack up all the DeLuna Fest gear and equipment, Lee said he expects Casino Beach parking lot to cleared of any sign of the three-day music festival by tonight.
Bands on the Beach fans should not have any problems finding parking for the performance of the Sawmill Band from the Farmers' Opry House in Chumuckla, he said.
18 Oct, 2011--
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