Man dies following suspected overdose at Pitch Music & Arts Festival amid extreme heatwave cancellation
The 23-year-old man died after being airlifted to hospital in Melbourne
A man has died after a suspected drug overdose at Australia's Pitch Music & Arts Festival.
The 23-year-old was airlifted to Melbourne's Alfred Hospital in a critical condition in the early hours of Sunday, 10th March, but later died. Two other men aged were also reportedly taken to hospital in a stable condition following suspected overdoses.
In a statement confirming the news, Pitch's organisers said: "We are deeply saddened to learn this evening that one of our people of Pitch has passed away after being airlifted to the Alfred Hospital in the early hours of Sunday morning. Our thoughts are with their family, friends and anyone in our wider community affected by this.
"We are devastated that this has occurred at an event where community has been a driving force over the last seven years."
The local Victorian government has subsequently been urged once again to rethink its stance on drug-testing. Victorian Greens spokesperson Aiv Puglielli said in a statement that the death should force state premier Jacinta Allan to "shift gears and finally set up pill-testing", The Guardian reports.
Puglielli continued: "While this Labor government continues to stall, young Victorian lives are being put at risk. Even with pure MDMA we've seen how extreme heat can deal a deadly blow. So with untested drugs circulating, this was truly a disaster waiting to happen."
In January, Australian harm reduction groups called for nationwide pill-testing after a number of suspected MDMA overdoses at Hardmission festival. A 2022 study by The Loop and University of Liverpool found that drug-checking services at festivals improved the safety of attendees.
The tragic news from Pitch came amid extreme heat conditions, which forced the festival to cancel its final night. Temperatures hit highs of 39 degrees celsius over the weekend, and weather warnings also forced the cancellation of all music programming between midnight on Friday and 6pm on Saturday.
A final update was shared by the festival yesterday (Sunday, 10th March), confirming that all music would end up at 7pm following consultation with local authorities.
"We have consistently followed the guidance of relevant authorities throughout the entire process," Pitch's organisers said in a statement announcing the festival's early closure. "Nobody is in immediate danger. We encourage everyone on site not to rush, calmly pack-up and depart either this evening or early tomorrow."
One of Australia's biggest festivals for electronic music, Pitch Music & Arts hosted 18,000 people at this year's festival, as well as a number of acts from across Australia and beyond.
