Heatwave prompts cancellation of Pitch music festival as man dies from suspected drug overdose

With south-western Victoria experiencing severe high temperatures, the organisers of the Pitch music and arts festival have advised of the cancellation of the event as of late Sunday (10th March).

Being held on a site near Ararat, organisers released a statement advising “through consultation with authorities, we have been directed to cancel the remainder of Pitch Music & Arts 2024 in light of an updated extreme fire danger warning issued (on Sunday) afternoon.

“Nobody is in immediate danger. We encourage everyone on site not to rush, calmly pack-up and depart either this evening or early tomorrow.”

The festival, which started on Friday and was set to run through to Tuesday, had been expected to attract around 18,000 people.

The heatwave, which was upgraded from severe to extreme earlier today, continues to affect the region with authorities warning conditions could worsen the health effects of drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy).

The festival has also seen an attendee’s death from a suspected drug overdose.

Victoria Police confirmed that a 23-year-old man died after becoming unresponsive early on Sunday morning. He was airlifted to Melbourne's Alfred Hospital about 4am on Sunday, where he later died.

Two other festival goers - men aged in their 30s and 40s - were also taken to hospital suffering from suspected overdoses and are in a stable condition.

Organisers have not confirmed whether attendees will be refunded with today's statement reading “we appreciate your patience as we work through this.

“Ticket holders will receive an update as more information becomes available.

“'Our top priority right now is to get everyone on site home safely.”

Image: The Pitch music and arts festival in 2017. Credit: Pitch/Bodhi Bailey.