Gorge Amphitheater reopens for first time since deadly shooting

For many, it’s been difficult to shake the scenes from the Gorge campground last month after a man opened fire, killing two and hurting three at Beyond Wonderland Music Festival.

The Gorge Amphitheater immediately shut down events and had not held one since but now there has been a return to normalcy.

The doors just opened on the second of the ‘Dead and Company’ shows on Saturday.

A lot of work went into getting the area and ticket holders prepared for the event. The Grant County Sheriff told us he spent a good chunk of the week reassuring people they have safety top of mind.

“We’ve just went through a terrible tragedy in our community here. And we want people to come to the doors, the ticket holders, the campers, everyone who’s coming out here to and feels as safe as possible,” said the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

To get into the grounds over the weekend you had to have a ticket, with no exceptions. Vehicles were subjected to search and officers checked for weapons and contraband.

Deputies even caught a man around the site on Thursday. While detained he mumbled something about explosives but deputies found no threat on him. A team of K9s came into to search for guns and explosives on the ground and found nothing.

The 26-year-old man accused in last month’s deadly shooting pleaded not guilty this week. James Kelly took psychedelic mushrooms at the festival and the woman he went with was one of the five people shot. The three who survived are out of the hospital now. Kelly is still in jail.