Organisers of the first ever Singapore Sky Lantern Festival had promised "a magical evening of lantern lighting and wishes in the sky" on Wednesday (Feb 21).

But a number of participants who attended the event are now demanding refunds in a case of "expectations versus reality".

Speaking to AsiaOne on Thursday, one participant, who only wanted to be known as Tan, said that she paid $260 for the Sentosa event with four of her friends.

While the lantern release "ceremony" was slated to start at 7.30pm, the 25-year-old said that she reached Palawan Green three hours earlier as "it was supposed to start with a music festival".

"I even took leave to go there," she lamented. "When we reached at 4.30pm, we saw the food tents were already torn down.

"And at 5pm, they announced that the lanterns would not be able to fly with fire and they had been replaced with led lights.

Tan said that she felt "scammed" at that point, while adding that the photos in the event listing on Eventbrite showed smiling participants releasing fire lanterns into the night sky.

In a TikTok video shared on Wednesday, it showed an event organiser telling the crowd that "due to unforeseen circumstances", they would only be "giving away" a pen, a lantern with LED lights.

"They are for you to pen your wishes here and tie your lanterns around the barricades. Or you can bring it home if you wish," he said.

Tan told AsiaOne that she was told by staff members there that she would not be able to get a refund if she had collected the lanterns.

"They asked us to contact Eventbrite for refunds, but on the website they stated that it was not guaranteed," she added.

'They falsely marketed the event' 

While the Sky Lantern Festival was supposed to end at midnight, Lianhe Zaobao reported that more than half of the participants had left at around 8pm. Those who stayed wrote prayers on sky lanterns and lit up LED lights.

Tan said that she left at 7.30pm after it was made clear that no fire lanterns would be released into the sky.

She added: "We tried to confront the event organiser, and he said that the event was ongoing, just that we can't release the lanterns.

"But that's what we went for? Basically they falsely marketed the event and said they had permits from the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). What an absolute waste of time."

Sheryl Lim, 25, who paid $100 for two tickets, said that she had initially doubted about whether the festival would go ahead as advertised. 

"Since when can Singapore allow lanterns to be released freely?" she told AsiaOne. "But they stated that the lanterns would have strings attached, so I thought to myself, 'why not?'. 

"And the tickets were not cheap too, but I just wanted to go for the vibes." 

Refund details in 2 weeks

Responding to AsiaOne's queries, event organiser Asian Couture and Boutique Private Limited said in an automated reply that the Sky Lantern Festival is still taking place with music at the same venue. 

But they were unable to release the fire lanterns into the sky on Wednesday "to prioritise the safety of attendees". 

In lieu of that, the organisers said they will be providing a lantern, pen, and candle led light for attendees to still participate in the tradition of writing and to pen their wishes and tie their lanterns around the barricade to releasing their wishes.

"As for refunds, we are currently in discussions with our team and will provide an update within 2 weeks. Thank you for your understanding and continued support," said the organiser. 

Free release of sky lanterns not allowed: CAAS

According to an advisory on CAAS's website, releasing lanterns freely into the sky is not allowed in Singapore.

"They may affect aircraft operations by distracting pilots especially during take-off or landing, or by being ingested by aircraft engines," CAAS said. "In turn, this may endanger lives and cause harm to aircraft in the air and property on the ground."

The release of tethered sky lanterns, however, may be permitted if they are done so at specific timings and subjected to approval from CAAS.

AsiaOne has asked Asian Couture and Boutique if they had sought approval in advance from CAAS to release sky lanterns. 

chingshijie@asiaone.com

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