Warning issued over dangerous pills identified at Creamfields

Warnings have been issued over dangerous pills identified as this year's Creamfields North.

Two separate warnings were issued, one over "high strength MDMA pills" and the other over pills in circulation that contain dimethylpentylone — a stimulant that can cause severe insomnia, paranoia, and an increased heart rate. Both had been identified by an onsite testing lab. You can read the full details below.

It comes after Sky News reported that a 25-year-old woman from South Wales died after falling ill at the festival in Cheshire on the night of Friday, 26th August. No link has been made between the death and the issued warnings .

Cheshire Police’s Superintendent Sarah Heath, who led the policing operation at the festival, said: “The tragic death of a young woman is heart-breaking and our thoughts are with her family and friends at this difficult time. An investigation into the cause of her death is underway, but at this stage, there is nothing to suggest that there are any suspicious circumstances."

Read the organiser's warnings over dangerous pills identified as this year's Creamfields North below.

70,000 people attended this year's Creamfields North. Superintendent Heath said that a “conscious effort” to target drug suppliers had been made at the festival. A Sky News report revealed that drug amnesty bins were set up around the festival, where people were encouraged to surrender illegal substances without facing prosecution or exclusions, with Cheshire police warning against “life-changing consequences”.

Back in June, UK harm reduction and drug-testing charity The Loop shared its findings from Manchester's Parklife festival. In July they warned festivalgoers over pills in circulation in the UK after being detected at Secret Garden Party.

A recent peer-reviewed study also revealed that a rise in fake MDMA in the UK is being caused by supply chain issues fuelled by Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing police crackdowns.