Over 40 people were taken from the Boonstock Music Festival in Penticton to the hospital emergency room, according to officials.
Interior Health spokesperson Grace Kucey said a total of 43 festival-goers were taken to the hospital in the 48 hours from Friday morning to Sunday morning.
One of those people was a 24-year-old woman from Leduc Alberta, who died as a result of a suspected drug overdose early Saturday morning at the Penticton Regional Hospital.
In a statement posted on the festival’s Facebook page, the organizers expressed condolences to the woman’s family and said the woman “became distressed while dancing at one of our stages.”
Two other festival attendees were in critical condition Sunday, also due to drug overdoses and Kelowna RCMP confirmed that at least a dozen others had already been treated for drug overdoses as of Saturday.
This latest music festival-related death comes weeks after 21-year-old Nick Phongsavath of Regina died at the Pemberton Music Festival. The cause of death had not been confirmed in that incident, though police said foul play was not involved.
The 38-degree dry conditions in Penticton prompted RCMP to issue a warning on Saturday.
“Refrain from ingesting any unknown substances and make sure that you’re being hydrated because dehydration can exacerbate or increase the risk of an overdose,” said RCMP Cst. Kris Clark.
Though festival attendees complained on social media that water bottles were initially being sold for $4, by Sunday afternoon organizers handed out free water.
Though the festival included big-name performers like Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, safety concerns were the main topic of conversation before the festival had even begun.
The BC Liquor Control and Licensing Branch denied the festival a liquor license for failure to submit proper safety and security plans. Last month the original security company pulled out of their contract, claiming organizers cut first aid and ordered the company not to communicate with police and the province.
Two men wearing security uniforms from Boonstock were caught on camera Saturday allegedly attempting to steal a bottle of vodka from a Penticton liquor store. The store posted the video to Facebook and festival organizers commented, saying the men had been fired and RCMP was investigating.
Last year the Boonstock Music Festival was kicked off its original site in Gibbons Alberta after nearly a decade of increasing lawlessness.
With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Tom Popyk
