REPORT. Its time for it to end: in Cher, the free party continues but the authorities are preparing for the end of the party.

Since Friday, more than 20,000 people have been participating in a wild party near Bourges. An event that has disrupted the daily life of the surrounding municipalities, and which the gendarmes are monitoring closely.

Published on 04/05/2026 at 17:37, estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Caption: The free party started on May 1, 2026, in Cornusse, Cher. (TRISTAN-SACHA B. / PHOTOPQR / BERRY REPUBLICAIN / MAXPPP)

The free party set up at a military field in Cher since May 1 is still ongoing on Monday, as confirmed by the national gendarmerie in a statement. “People are progressively leaving the site,” the text continues. The Cher prefecture still estimates around 5,000 participants on-site on Monday afternoon, at a maximum. Over 20,000 people gathered at this military field near Bourges. But after four days, the time is starting to feel long.

Tired eyes, Denis Durand, the mayor of Bengy-sur-Craon, says he “slept a little better.” He watches as partygoers queue up, hood over their heads and under the rain, to stock up at the village grocery store. Many have already left, but on the hill, the free party continues, and the mayor has no idea when it will end. “I don’t know, we will wait for the festival to end. I have no date for the end of operations,” he says.

“We are managing day by day, if not hour by hour,” explains the mayor. For the past three days, they’ve had to handle stray dogs, thousands of parked cars all over the village, and roads blocked by police checkpoints. “It’s a bit surprising that we suspended school transportation today. We have an agricultural high school, and for the college, transportation was also canceled. Parents are figuring it out,” Denis Durand recounts. “The community hall was requisitioned for emergency services. Today, the children were supposed to do gymnastics in the community hall. Everything has been disrupted. It’s time for it to end.”

The mayor points to a camper van stranded in a field, probably stuck in a rut. The partygoers have taken the back roads to avoid fines. The mayor hasn’t totaled everything yet but fears more damage for the farmers.

The atmosphere has shifted in the last few hours. On the road leading to the military field, mobile gendarmerie trucks begin to gather around the free party site. Many gendarmes equipped with crowd control protection pads are visible. It’s starting to feel like an evacuation. “We’ve heard about €135 fines for participation and disruptive parking; they like to tax us on that,” predicts a young Normand in an oversized camper van. “At every event, everyone gets a €135 fine for the vehicle and per person,” confirms one of his friends.

Around the sea of tents, camper vans, and crepe – or LSD – stands, the free party is no longer as impressive as over the weekend. But the towering walls of sound continue to blast techno music. Anthony, a 32-year-old Alsatian farmer, sips a beer on his camping chair. He remains, despite the rain and the gendarmes. “We pulled a tarp between the two cars to take cover when needed, at least,” he describes. “I’m waiting for my buddies to wake up a bit. Then, we’ll have a little meal, a little bolognese, and that’s it.” And he plans to stay on site: “Party again, if it keeps going.” For him, the gendarmes’ intervention is not imminent. “Impossible. Have you seen the magnitude? I don’t know how we could stop it just like that.”

The prefecture announced this morning that distant detonations could be heard. The army must resume its testing on the shooting range, but at a great distance with all necessary safety precautions. In front of the huge speakers adorned with a woman’s face with a snake on her head, the die-hard partygoers keep dancing under the gaze of the continuing gendarme helicopter.

The national gendarmerie also indicates that the “dangerousness” of the site is established, especially since “the discovery of a shell [on Sunday] and a shell fragment, handled by the bomb squad,” and adds that “no incidents have been reported.” The tests “safe for the remaining festivalgoers, will be carried out” on the field on Monday, the SIRPA (Army Information and Public Relations Service) adds.

In terms of figures, by 6 a.m. on Monday, 19,636 checks had been carried out. 63 weapons were seized, 3,578 fines were issued, five people were placed in custody, and 151 fines were established for drug possession. Authorities also checked 8,776 vehicles. Damages were also noted, such as “graffiti, a broken bunker door, damaged electrical box, and a broken barrier,” detailed the national gendarmerie.

Additionally, four people are hospitalized in critical condition, out of the 87 taken care of by emergency services.