One man is still in a critical condition following a spate of overdoses across the Gold Coast over the weekend. As ABC News reports, two people who ingested a mystery drug were placed in induced comas and another 14 were hospitalised in just over 24 hours.

According to The Guardian, 15 of the 16 revellers have now been allowed to go home. However, one man remains in intensive care at Gold Coast University Hospital. Reports claim all 16 consumed an unknown drug that’s been circulating along the Gold Coast.

ABC News reports a total of seven ambulances were called to Surfers Paradise nightclubs between 12.30am and 2.45am on Sunday, with reports indicating that all patients were “hallucinating” and displaying strange behaviour.

According to the Queensland Ambulance Service, those treated were “aggressive, non-compliant and dangerous”. Some were reportedly jumping on furniture, running into traffic, and one patient reportedly ended up “swimming in a canal”.

“They seemed to be not present and understanding what they were doing at that time,” Queensland Ambulance Service inspector Stephen Burns told the ABC. “The drugs seem to create a hallucinogenic effect, they are not understanding or have the wherewithal of what is happening.”

“They are conscious and alert, but doing abnormal things. They sometimes become aggressive, they are non-compliant and they can be a danger to themselves and others.” Many have speculated about what drug the patients may have taken, but it’s not yet clear if they all took the same drug.

According to The Guardian, the drug involved in the cases is “believed” to be synthetic hallucinogen Alpha PVP, aka ‘zombie’ or ‘gravel’, though ABC News reports that police believe the drug to be a variant of MDMA.

Meanwhile, pill-testing and drug harm minimisation advocate Dr David Caldicott has said such widespread overdoses could have been avoided if a proper pill-testing program was introduced in Australia.

“If Australia had pill testing? Initial ODs could have been avoided, secondaries would have been. We’d have ID’d drug,” he tweeted. Dr Caldicott subsequently tweeted that we may be about to face another summer of multiple overdoses.

As Tone Deaf noted earlier this year, last summer saw numerous deaths and countless overdoses after punters at music festivals experienced adverse reactions to drugs, making it one of the deadliest summer festival seasons on record.

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine