Future Drug Deaths Questioned

Professor Dr. K. Nadesan of University Malaya Medical Center told the The Star Online he was sent “several detailed reports correcting the police statements” and that the post-mortem results do not indicate drug overdoses but rather heat stroke as the causes of death. Drugs, says the publication, played a “negligible role” in the deaths.

“Generally,” he said, “the police did not show much interest in the reports. Unfortunately, they made statements without proper scientific reasons, which is not the right way.”

Two of the people brought to the hospital who died, in fact, had no traces of drugs in their bodies, contradicting police reports that said all were due to drug overdoses. Nadesan said his hospital handled the post-mortems for three of the victims and treated nine others. Though some of the deceased did test positive for MDMA, the amount was much lower than the “average recreational level.”

The other hospital that treated ill revelers did not reveal to the Star their own results. Police confirmed that the reports for the six victims listed heat stroke as the cause of death. Nadesan said a variety of factors contributed to the tragedy: choking haze, high humidity, and temperatures beyond 95 degrees.

It was obvious that the victims were not drinking enough water. If the drugs contributed at all it was in causing the victims to overextend themselves in the hot weather. They stopped sweating, which in turn caused internal hemorrhaging.

The alleged overdoses have been cited as the reason for canceling several events in Kuala Lumpur, including the Life in Colour festival in April last year, and Thirst 2015. Two months ago, Singapore canceled another big dance festival “because of serious concerns over drug abuse.”