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University of B.C. student Colby Messih had made plans to attend the four-day event and was upset by news of the cancellation.

Messih said he paid $500 US for tickets, camping and parking and planned to attend with 40 other students who had scraped money together while studying.

“I feel pretty sad,” he said. “I wish they would have just organized it better.”

Messih said he is hopeful there will be refunds, but he knows that is unlikely because “it seemed like (the organizers) didn’t know what they were doing to begin with.”

Slated to run July 13 to 16, it would have been the fourth year for the Pemberton event, and was to feature headliners Chance the Rapper, Muse and A Tribe Called Quest, as well as Major Lazer, Haim, Run The Jewels and dozens more acts.

Last year, the festival drew a record 180,000 fans over four days to Pemberton Village, north of Whistler. The event has brought major international acts such as Pearl Jam, Snoop Dogg, The Black Keys, Nine Inch Nails, Frank Ocean and Soundgarden.

The cancellation came after lineup announcements were delayed several times in recent weeks.

As of Thursday afternoon, four-day, general-admission tickets were still selling for $369, while VIP tickets — which included special entrances, viewing and parking — cost $899, and Super VIP tickets cost $1,799.

The event is produced and promoted by Huka in collaboration with the Village of Pemberton, Sunstone Group, Lil’wat Nation and Squamish-Lillooet Regional District.

It is the second major festival the regional district has lost in the past year, after the Squamish Festival was cancelled in spring 2016. Founded in 2010, it brought major acts to the Squamish Valley including Drake, Weezer, Metric, Bad Religion, The Tragically Hip, Eminem and Bruno Mars.

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