A 17-year-old girl died of a suspected ecstacy overdose and 21 other teenagers were taken to hospital with drug-related symptoms following a drum and bass event at an amusement park, it has been revealed.
Kent Police declared a major incident event at 7pm on 29 June over the Worried About Henry gig at Dreamland in Margate.
A number of young people under the age of 18, including a 15-year-old, had been taken to hospital, the force said in an application for a review of the venue’s licence.
One person remains in hospital in a medically induced coma, an unnamed superintendent said.
The girl who died has been named in media reports as Emily Stokes.
In a crowdfunding appeal, her sister, Megan Stokes, calls her the “kindest person you could ever meet” and “so full of life”, adding: “To have her taken away so suddenly at just only 17 years old, it has completely broke me.”
Around 7,000 tickets were sold for the over-16s event, which began at 1pm, according to police.
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In the early afternoon, officers became aware of three people being taken to hospital from the venue who were believed to be suffering from drug overdoses.
A man with suspected illegal drugs was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply, at around 5pm, and an hour later, an ambulance was called for a 17-year-old boy who was suffering from side effects of drugs.
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A call shortly after confirmed one of the casualties taken to hospital earlier in the day had been declared dead following a suspected MDMA (ecstasy) overdose, the senior police officer added.
Police declared a major incident after becoming aware of the 11 young people who had been taken to hospital due to drug use.
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However, the force did not close the event down as it feared “a potential large-scale public order incident” if it did.
“Allowing the event to continue would assist in the identification/support of any further casualties who could be treated accordingly.
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This was a challenging decision but allowed mitigating factors to be implemented to minimise the risk towards already vulnerable children at the event.”
Police said in the document they were not trying to revoke Dreamland’s licence as they are “confident in working with Dreamland prior to any review hearing.”
