Teenage festival in Belgium shut down: 22 girls unwell, possibly ‘needle spiking’ | Abroad

At 5 pm the first girl felt ill and reported to the nursing station. “She told me that she would have felt a prick,” says Hasselt mayor Steven Vandeput (N-VA). “It soon became apparent that fifteen people, all girls, may have had to deal with needle spiking. We immediately started our emergency intervention plan and consulted with the security forces to end the festival immediately. That happened just before 6 p.m., after which the entire site was evacuated.”

“The people who felt unwell have been cared for on site for the time being. There, doctors will assess whether further treatment in hospital is necessary. In the meantime, the judicial authorities are also on site to see how this could have happened. But so far there is no trace of possible culprits. Ultimately, 22 children reported to the emergency room because they were unwell. Four of them were taken by ambulance to Jessa Hospital. Two children were driven to the emergency room by their parents.”

“Most children have been diagnosed with hyperventilation. They were cared for on site. One girl is said to have had a puncture wound, but the investigation continues. The necessary tests are also carried out in the hospital.”

For many parents there was a surprising phone call from their children who suddenly had to be picked up two hours earlier than the planned end time of 20:00. It was therefore quite busy in the area due to passing vehicles.

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