MDMA overdose: nine people hospitalised after Melbourne music festival had severe hyperthermia

Authorities believe extreme heat and physical activity, rather than a single bad batch, exacerbated drug’s impact at Hardmission

• Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast

All nine people hospitalised after a mass drug overdose at an electronic music festival in Melbourne last weekend suffered severe hyperthermia, with three people remaining in a critical condition.

Victorian health authorities believe the overdoses at the Hardmission festival were not caused by a single bad batch of the drug MDMA as originally feared and that extreme heat and physical activity exacerbated the drug’s impact.

“We can confirm that everyone hospitalised from Saturday’s incident experienced severe hyperthermia, caused by a combination of MDMA exposure, hot and humid conditions and physical exertion,” a spokesperson for the Victorian health department said.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup