The weekend event, known as “EST Fest 2016: Last Weekend on Earth”, is being held at the Ohio Dreams venue in Butler, Ohio, located about 70 miles northeast of Columbus.
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An arrest has been made in connection with 23 overdoses at a music festival in Richland County Saturday night.
The packages were marked “prescribed medibles”, according to reports, and were laced with high levels of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the same drug found in marijuana. Only one or two sweets would get a user high, but some people were eating whole packages, officials said.
Richland County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Maj.
The paramedics initially believed they were dealing with an opiate overdose, but after a failed initial treatment with Narcan (which counteracts opioids overdoses) and testing the sweets, it was revealed that these had a very high dosage of THC. “They just felt different”. Joe Masi said investigators quickly identified the candy-like substance as a common factor in the illnesses.
Starting around 4 p.m., ambulances loaded with overdose victims were arriving at OhioHealth in nearby Mansfield, said hospital spokeswoman Nikki Workman.
The festival, headlined by Cleveland rapper Machine Gun Kelly, was set to continue through the weekend.
THC is the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. CNN noted that the drug is especially risky because there are fifteen types of synthetic cannabinoids that are classified as Schedule I controlled substances.
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The EST Fest website says the two day music festival began Friday.
