Electric Forest also suspended operations later on Sunday due to severe weather.
The final day of Electric Forest 2026 in Rothbury, Michigan was overshadowed by the news of a newborn baby found dead in a portable toilet in the morning on Sunday, June 28.
WOOD TV8 first broke the story, citing anonymous sources who claimed that the infant appeared to have been born inside a Porta-Potty in one of the camping areas. An employee of the restroom vending company reportedly found it with the placenta and umbilical cord present.
The Michigan State Police, who are currently investigating the baby’s death, have shared that there is no known threat to the public. “If you were in the area and observed anything unusual, or if you have information that you believe may be relevant, we encourage you to come forward,” reads their statement.
Later in the evening on Sunday, Electric Forest addressed the incident in a statement. “Forest Family, it causes us so much pain to have to share this difficult news with you,” it reads. “@michstatepolice continues to investigate this tragic event if you can assist in any way. HQ is heartbroken and knows that our Forest Family is as well.”
Later on Sunday, Electric Forest asked attendees to vacate the event site due to severe weather, resuming limited operations in the early hours of Monday. This is not the first time that conditions have forced organizers to pause programming, with the 2024 edition’s final day also sidelined due to heavy rain and thunderstorms.
Electric Forest inaugurated in 2008, originally under the name Rothbury Music Festival, and rebranded to its current name in 2011. The 50,000-person festival’s fusion of electronic music, jam bands, and other genres has cemented it as a familiar fixture of the US festival landscape, with artists like Excision, Chris Lake, and The String Cheese Incident billed in 2026.
This is a developing story and EDM Identity will share additional information as it becomes available.
