A man has died, and another six people have been rushed to hospital from a music festival in Sydney’s west.
Police are investigating after a number of festivalgoers suffered medical episodes at the Dreamstate music festival at Olympic Park on Saturday.
A man in his 40s died at the scene. He is yet to be formally identified.
Another six people were taken to hospital. One remains in a critical condition.
Dreamstate is a techno and trance music event held at Sydney Showground. The festival was due to hold another event at Melbourne’s Flemington Racecourse on Sunday.
More than 40,000 people are expected to attend Sydney’s Laneway Festival on Sunday, where drug-checking will be offered to patrons for the first time.
The festival is the eleventh to participate in NSW Health’s 12-month pill testing trial, which was introduced on the recommendations of the state government’s drug summit in 2024.
NSW Health on Tuesday issued a warning about high-dose MDMA (ecstasy) that had been detected through the drug checking service at music festivals across Sydney and the Central Coast over summer.
Some tablets have also been found to contain dipentylone, a synthetic psychoactive stimulant.
“We are concerned about the prolonged detection of these high-dose MDMA tablets and are urging the community to be aware and vigilant, particularly for those people attending major festivals over the next few weeks,” Dr Darren Roberts, medical director of the NSW Poisons Information Centre, said.
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Angus Thomson is a reporter covering health at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.
