Rainbow Family is ordered to leave Norhtern California forest or risk jail after thousands of 'counter culture' members threatened to descend on small town

Hundreds of people attending the annual Rainbow Family Gathering have been forced to leave a northern California national forest within just two days - or face fines and jail time.

The National Forest System ordered the more than 500 members of the Rainbow Family of Living Light to pack up their bags on Wednesday or face up to $5,000 in fines or up to six months in jail.

Any new members of the counter-culture movement that show up in the next few days would also be subjected to fines - and if the members do not leave the site within 48 hours, law enforcement would consider other options.

Officials with the National Forest System say the order was issued to protect natural, tribal and cultural resources on the land - in addition to concerns about fire safety and public health, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. 

The annual Rainbow Family Gathering had already drawn 500 people to the Plumas National Forest by Wednesday - with more expected to arrive in the coming days

Members of the Rainbow Family of Living Light started setting up camp at the Plumas National Forest on Monday, but within a few days, the number of people gathering in the forest exploded, KRCR reports.

It is expected to grow even further over the next few days, drawing about 10,000 attendees to the area before a large-scale celebration on the Fourth of July.

But the group, which claims it has no leader, did not apply for a special use permit from the US National Forest Service - which are required for any event involving more than 75 people.

The group has noted that it claims no leader, and consequently there is no one to sign such permits. 

As the group of counter-culture protesters continued to grow, National Forest Service officials said they started to worry that their gathering would threaten public health and safety.

The US National Forest Service has now ordered the members to leave the area

If they do not evacuate after 48 hours, law enforcement would consider other options

'The forest is concerned about the 500-plus individuals already dispersed camping in a concentrated area,' Chris Carlton, the supervisor for Plumas National Forest said in a statement to the Chronicle.

He noted that the National Forest Service is 'always willing to work with any organization or group interested in recreating on the national forest,' and said the priority is 'maintaining public health and safety and the appropriate stewardship of public lands and natural resources.'

But the group had already started digging up trenches for latrines, digging compost pits and running water from Indian Creek before the evacuation order was made Wednesday, Action News Now reports.

Members also trampled local vegetation, and officials grew concerned about the risk of wildfires - stating there would be a 'zero tolerance' policy for any fires in the area, which is expected to experience hotter-than-average temperatures over the next few days, increasing the risk of a wildfire.

'No fire is going to happen,' Coda Witt, the incident commander for the National Forest Service, said at a community meeting Tuesday night.

'If they have a can on beans up there and they need to eat it, it's gonna be a cold can of beans. We're not messing around with fire restrictions.' 

Forest Service officials said they had 'zero tolerance' for fires in the Plumas National Forest

Forest Service officials now say they are planning on enforcing the evacuation order, which Lassen County Supervisor Jason Ingram praised.

'I believe this is the first Rainbow Gathering event to be shot down, and you all had a hand in that,' he said of the service.

'As I've said from the beginning, my concerns with this gathering were always the illegality aspect, the increased fire risk this would have created, the environmental impact and the blatant disrespect shown to our local tribes.

'Events are fine,' Ingram continued, 'but not events that blatantly disregard the law and endanger our land and community fire safety.'

But in a public Facebook group entitled Rainbow Gathering 2024, one member said they are now considering an alternate site for their yearly gathering. 

The first national Rainbow gathering was held in 1972, partly an outgrowth of community many young people felt at the 1969 Woodstock music festival. 

The get-together is held each year on national forestland.