A 17-year-old girl from Oldham has died at Leeds Festival in the early hours of this morning.
West Yorkshire Police were called to the festival following a report the girl had died shortly after 3.40am on Saturday.
Leeds Festival’s Police Commander Matt Davison said: “While the exact cause of her death is yet to be established, the information we have indicates that she has taken a combination of drugs. This is a tragic incident and I hope serves as a timely reminder to others of the risk of taking illegal substances, particularly when mixing different types of drugs and drinking alcohol.”
West Yorkshire Police confirmed a 17-year-old boy, also from the Oldham area, is now in police custody after being arrested on suspicion of supplying controlled drugs.
The festival’s Police Commander added: “Our thoughts are with the family of the girl who has died. We have family liaison officers in place supporting them and they have asked that their privacy is respected at this extremely difficult time.
“If anyone has any concerns for either themselves or others at the festival, I would urge them to contact staff on-site or seek urgent medical assistance.”
Shortly after West Yorkshire Police made the announcement, Leeds Festival organisers said on Twitter: “If you feel unwell or need advice please visit the medical tents in the arena or the welfare tents in the campsites staffed by a medical and drug advisory team.”
Leeds Festival Police issued a warning on Friday evening after high-strength ecstasy pills with three times the ‘normal’ adult dose were found circulating on site.
Melvin Benn, Managing Director of Festival Republic, which organises the Reading & Leeds Festivals, said: “To say we are deeply saddened about this tragedy is an understatement.
“West Yorkshire Police have taken action against those that may have supplied the drugs, and we will continue to work with them as usual.
“I would like to take this opportunity to remind anyone attending Reading and Leeds Festival that there is no safe way to take prohibited drugs and there are no safe prohibited drugs.”
Drugs harm reduction and safety testing service The Loop are not at Leeds Festival, though harm reduction advice and safety alerts continue to be posted on their social media throughout the weekend.
Image credit: Andrew Egerton / ( CC BY 2.0 )
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