At least one man died from a drug overdose at the SAGA festival, held in Bucharest on the first weekend in June. Three others were hospitalized at the Floreasca and Saint Pantelimon hospitals after suffering from cardiopulmonary arrest linked to drug consumption.

One of the two was a 25-year-old man from Moldova who was resuscitated for 40 minutes without success. The other drug-related death could not be decidedly connected to the festival.

In total, seven young people had to go to the hospital after taking drugs at the festival, according to Digi24. Police picked up around thirty people trying to sell drugs at the National Arena, where the festival was held. The National Anti-Drug Agency advised people through media to avoid simultaneously taking ecstasy and drinking energy drinks.

“We’re talking about young people, 18 or even 16,” said Fiorella Mitoi, spokeswoman for Saint Pantelimon hospital, quoted by Europa Liberă. “There are patients who are brought in respiratory arrest and when they wake up, they realize where they are and they run,” she added.

Organizers of the SAGA festival issued a press statement saying that drug consumption is not tolerated and that ambulances were on standby for those who needed care. Moreover, security teams checked those who entered the festival grounds. However, police found 120 people in possession of drugs during the festival.

Over 70,000 people attended the three-day event. Roughly two dozen people, some of them festivalgoers, went to the hospital after using drugs over the same period. Two are now comatose.

Partnering with the SAGA festival organizers, the National Anti-Drug Agency issued several messages on social media seeking to discourage drug use during the event. Volunteers present on the festival grounds also talked to participants about the dangers of drug usage.

Anti-drug agencies in Romania highlight that people now get their first contact with drugs at an average age of 13. They start with cannabis and synthetic drugs, then attempt to combine several types of drugs, which they buy as cheaply as possible, with little concern over safety. Some go as far as attempting to consume drugs in combination with battery acid or rat poison.

Romania is among the European countries with the lowest drug use. Roughly one in ten Romanians try drugs at least once, and 6% reported using drugs recently. Only 3.9% are current users. However, those between 15 and 34 are most likely to use drugs.

A report by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) revealed that 5.8% of young adults (15-34) in Romania used drugs within the last year. Half of them used cannabis.

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Saga Festival Facebook page)