Buenos Aires Bans EDM Festivals

Electronic dance festivals have been suspended by the mayor of Buenos Aires, Argentina, until legislation addressing drug use is adopted in the wake of an event that left five dead and several more hospitalized.

Buenos Aires Mayor Horacio Rodriguez Larreta announced April 25 he would not issue permits for further EDM events until a bill becomes law requiring festivals to educate attendees on the dangers of drug use.

“Organizers will hand out brochures and provide information against the (dangers) of drugs and addiction,” Larreta was quoted as saying in the Herald. “This fight we have to take together, with more restraint, information and prevention.” Sebastián Casanello, the federal judge leading the government investigation into the events at Time Warp April 16, ordered the detention of 30 people connected to the event.

Among those detained was Adrian Conci, head of event production company Dell Producciones. All of the attendees who died at the festival were men between the ages of 20 and 25, and four more young people required intensive medical care after the event.

WRadio reports the number of tickets sold to Time Warp well exceeded the venue’s maximum capacity, but Conci’s lawyer described this as a fault [or mistake], not constituting a crime.

Daily Pulse