Freak Water Disaster Cancels Stern Grove’s Too $hort and Tower of Power Concert Sunday

The Stern Grove Festival returned this summer, and we’ve enjoyed rocking out there on Sundays leading up to this Sunday’s season finale of Tower of Power and Too $hort. But thanks to an insane water accident where SF Public Utilities Commission workers busted a water valve and gushers shot 30 feet high, this Sunday’s Stern Grove concert is cancelled.

Due to a nearby ruptured water main, Stern Grove and Pine Lake will be closed until further notice while @sfpublicworks & @MySFPUC fix the problem. Stay tuned for when we are able to reopen the park. pic.twitter.com/uqbIV1c5Cx

— San Francisco Recreation and Park Department (@RecParkSF) August 23, 2021

“Stern Grove Festival, the longest-running free outdoor music festival in the San Francisco Bay Area, has been forced to announce the cancellation of this Sunday’s concert and fundraiser featuring Tower of Power & Too $hort,” the festival said in a Wednesday afternoon press release.

Tragic. Water gushing uncontrollably for hours in San Francisco. Stern Grove is flooded. And then there’s the CA drought pic.twitter.com/vtc7HJw8VZ

— mary maxon (@MaryEMaxon) August 24, 2021

“Due to a major water main rupture on Sloat Ave., above the Grove, the public park has experienced extensive damage that now renders the Festival grounds site unusable for public events,” they add. “The Festival, alongside San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, is continuing to assess the long-term damage to both the grounds and surrounding treeline, although the site in its current condition is unsafe for events of any kind in the immediate future.”

What looks to be a damaged hydrant on Sloat near 19th Avenue and Stern Grove @KPIXtv pic.twitter.com/NJEHIrvp27

— Andria Borba (@AndriaKPIX) August 23, 2021

“We are devastated to announce the sudden cancellation of our season finale and annual fundraiser with Tower of Power and Too $hort. This was definitely one of our most highly anticipated concerts of an incredible season, but the damage is too severe to move forward safely at this time. We are grateful that no one was hurt, and we are proud to have overcome so many challenges this year to have presented nine exceptional concerts for more than 50,000 people. We look forward to restoring the Grove and being able to welcome the community back next year,” executive director Bob Fiedler said in the release.

.@SFFDPIO From my home in Ingleside, I can see a large stream of water in the air that appears to be from a leak somewhere near #SternGrove. Hope you are aware. @SF311 pic.twitter.com/MI3iJezbtK

— Edie Schaffer, CEM (@sf_edie) August 23, 2021

The silver lining is that if you missed one of the shows, they’re going to play some of them on TV. “With the cancellation of the August 29 concert, today’s announcement officially marks the conclusion of the 84th concert season of Stern Grove Festival 2021,” they continued. “Stay tuned though as the Festival will soon unveil two one-hour TV specials airing on KPIX/CBS in the coming weeks that feature numerous performance highlights from this year’s concert season.”

We are devastated to announce that, due to a water main rupture, the Grove is closed until further notice and our fundraiser/final concert on Sun with Tower of Power & Too $hort is canceled. The damage is catastrophic & we need your help to rebuild! Text "sterngrove" to 56512. pic.twitter.com/qiMFqjK5Is

— Stern Grove Festival (@sterngrovefest) August 25, 2021

The festival could also use your help recovering from this. “The resulting damage from the flooding is too severe for us to produce a safe and successful event this year, so rescheduling was not an option. The health and safety of our audience, artists and staff is our priority.  You can help us rebuild the venue and park by donating now on our website or by texting “sterngrove” to 56512,” they say on the Stern Grove website.