A landmark festival drug checking trial has unearthed multiple dangers hidden in party drugs with future revellers warned to be on the lookout for signs of overdose.
After years of resistance, NSW is running a year-long trial of pill-testing at major festivals.
Recent discoveries of supercharged doses of ecstasy and powder with dangerous chemical composites have sparked warnings from public health officials.
Multiple MDMA tablets containing unusually high doses were tested at the Strawberry Fields music festival last weekend at Tocumwal, on the NSW-Victoria border, the fifth event to participate in the trial.
Analogues of ketamine, which mimic its chemical make-up but can produce stronger hallucinations, were also found in powder and crystalline samples.
No people required hospitalisation after experiencing overdoses at the festival despite the drugs posing significant dangers, NSW Health said in a statement on Thursday.
"The amount of MDMA in a tablet or capsule can vary significantly, even within the same batch," Chief Addiction Medicine Specialist Hester Wilson said.
"High doses of MDMA can cause severe agitation, raised body temperature, seizures or fits, irregular heart rhythm and death."
Concerns the drugs are still in circulation have prompted the state government to roll out checking facilities at the Hypersonic festival at Sydney Olympic Park on Saturday.
Health officials are also on alert as high temperatures are predicted this weekend, with 33C forecast for western Sydney.
"Hot environments, such as at music festivals, increase the risk of harm from MDMA," Dr Wilson said.
"Taking a break from dancing, seeking shade and drinking water are important measures to reduce the risk of overheating."
While NSW is persisting with its drug checking trial, it rejected other recommendations from a December 2024 drug summit including the end of sniffer dogs and strip searches by police at festivals.
Other states have cracked down harder including Queensland's decision to become the first jurisdiction to place an outright ban on pill testing, against the advice of medical experts.
