'Trainwreck' Netflix: Where was Woodstock '99 held?

Before the disastrous Fyre Festival of 2017, there was Woodstock '99.

Netflix's latest true-crime series, Trainwreck: Woodstock '99 explores just how exactly the third installment of Woodstock became such a failure.

The festival may have featured iconic sets from big rock stars such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage Against the Machine, Metallica and Limp Bizkit, but the festival descended into complete and utter chaos.

From violence, sexual assault, fire, dehydration, overpricing and more, Woodstock '99 did more than exceed expectations—it completely destroyed them.

Newsweek has everything you need to know about the trainwreck that was Woodstock '99, starting with where the whole festival took place.

Where Was Woodstock '99 Held?

Over the weekend of July 23 to 25, 1999, a quarter-million people headed to the Woodstock musical festival. The weekend was set to be a millennium-defining celebration of peace, love and music just like the famous 1969 original. In the end, however, Woodstock '99 turned out to be a far cry from flower-power.

The festival was held at the former Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome, upstate New York. The air base was in use between 1942 and 1995, and was particularly active during World War II, often the base of repairing, modifying and maintaining aircraft.

In 1984, Griffiss was added to the Environmental Protection Agency's National Priorities List after hazardous chemicals were found in the soil and water as a result of base operations.

A report by EPA found that solvents, lead and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) had been disposed of in landfills and dry wells, contaminating the water of Three Mile Creek and Six Mile Creek, as well as groundwater beneath portions of the base, leading to a cleanup operation.

The base closed in 1995, just four years before Woodstock would later call it home. The new location was roughly 100 miles from the site of the 1969 festival. Ahead of Woodstock '99, the festival's co-creator Michael Lang told New York Daily News he "loved the idea" of having the festival take place at Griffiss.

"I loved the idea of having it on a military base, but I didn't want a place that was just vast and flat and covered with concrete. Fortunately, this isn't," he said.

"I can't tell you how many people over the years have told me Woodstock changed their lives and it's because of how you live while you're here—in total freedom. It's a way a lot of people have never lived, even for a couple of days, and once you've experienced it, you won't be the same," Lang said.

Among the other problems that surfaced over the weekend, the 3,552-acre location itself was a major issue. The fact the festival took place on a former air base meant the concrete setting and asphalt ground was the worst possible location for a music festival.

There were massive airplane hangers no longer in use; a large runway also cut through the festival grounds. Additionally, due to the vast space, the two main stages were a 2-mile walk from one another. There was little to no shade and festival-goers camped on the tarmac.

As heard in Trainwreck: Woodstock '99, one of the main reasons Griffiss was chosen was to avoid the gate-crashing that had occurred in 1969 and 1994. Due to the site being a former air base, there was already a 12-foot plywood-and-steel fence in place, which would hopefully keep out those trying to sneak in without a ticket.

However, when chaos ensued, the wall also prevented people from escaping to safety.

Marketed as a "peace wall", the gate was manned by 500 New York police troopers for additionally security.

During the chaos of Woodstock '99, which saw a scorching heatwave, violence, sexual assault, looting, vandalism and arson, the base assets at Griffiss were not harmed.

There was also very little access to water, even as the tarmac on the ground became unbearably hot. The site was also seriously overcrowded and overpriced.

Today the airfield is now Griffiss International Airport, owned by Oneida County, and the site is home to Griffiss Business and Technology Park and the Rome Research Site of the Air Force Research Laboratory.

Trainwreck: Woodstock '99 is streaming on Netflix now.