Mother nature was a bit of a wet blanket back in July during the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival in Edmonton. This year was a record-setting summer for rain in Edmonton, with July falling just short of the all-time monthly record set in 1901. The storms caused flooding, evacuations during concerts and events to be cancelled. One of the casualties was Matt Rife’s show at the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival. Fan Gwendolyn Ruttle drove five hours from Peace River to see the show with a friend. “We got all set up and we’re all happy-go-lucky, and then all of a sudden we got to see Matt Rife for probably 20 seconds, just to come out and tell us the show was cancelled due to weather,” she said. “Then after that, it was crazy.” Ruttle said the 20,000 people at the show were evacuated from the site shortly before the “rain came pouring down.” She said they were told by the festival refunds for the show would be issued within 90 days. For Ruttle, that would amount to a little over $300, but she says the refund never came and the 90-day deadline from the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival passed last week. “Ninety days comes around and there’s no response, nothing. It’s just crickets,” she said. “I’m just absolutely furious.” Ruttle isn’t alone. Lisa Hale got four VIP tickets to the show, costing around $800 total. “I understand, you had 20,000 people there, you have to figure out who bought weekend passes, who only bought this, who’s VIP, who’s not,” she said. “I understand that part, but what makes me the most frustrated is the lack of communication with it. And they’re already selling tickets for next year.” In a response to CTV News Edmonton, the government recommended two steps for people looking for a refund. “Those who purchased through a secondary seller or third-party platform are entitled to a full refund and should reach out to our consumer protection unit if they haven’t received one,” said Kevin Lee, press secretary for the minister of Service Alberta. “Those who bought their tickets directly from the event organizer should contact their credit card provider to see what options are available to get their money back.” Lee added that no complaints had been filed so far. Ruttle said she tried going to her bank to dispute the charge, but was unsuccessful. CTV News Edmonton reached out to the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival but has not gotten a response. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Nahreman Issa
