Authorities in the US state of Nevada are investigating a death that occurred during the annual Burning Man festival as a homicide.

Authorities were alerted on Saturday about a man found dead in a pool of blood in the festival, which is held in the Black Rock Desert some 175 kilometers (110 miles) north of Reno.

What do we know about the homicide?

Authorities "found a single white adult male lying on the ground, obviously deceased," the Pershing County Sheriff's Office said in a statement Sunday.

Police have cordoned off a perimeter in the area where the body was found and were interviewing several festival participants.

The identity of the deceased has yet to be known, the sheriff's office said. The body was taken to a medical examiner's office.

The sheriff's office said the incident appeared to be singular, but they advised all those at the festival, which wraps on Monday, to exercise vigilance.

What did the Burning Man festival say?

Festival organizers said they were cooperating with law enforcement, calling on participants not to interfere with the probe.

"The safety and well-being of our community are paramount," the statement said, offering support via a crisis support team as well as free Wi-Fi access should the participants need to communicate with their loved ones.

The annual festival, running since the 1980s, attracts tens of thousands of artists, musicians and activists for a range of wilderness camping and avant-garde performances. The highlight is the burning of a large wooden effigy of a man, which has earned the gathering its name.

In 2023, the festival witnessed another death, when thousands of people were trapped after heavy rainfall swamped the area where it was held.

Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko