From Staff Reports

Emergency medical personnel transported seven people who were “unresponsive” from the Sound Tribe Sector 9 concert at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium on Oct. 25, an event that turned ugly after police took the rare step of shutting down the show early. It started about 8:45 p.m. and was shut down around 11:30 p.m.

A dozen officers were called in to disperse the crowd of 1,400 and clear the streets. Police were pelted with bottles and other debris as they were helping those in need.

EMS workers reported that a powerful hallucinogenic drug known as ketamine was involved in at least two of the overdose cases at the electronic music concert.

Medics were not able to determine the cause of the overdoses in the other cases. All seven people who were transported to Mission Hospital were later discharged.

Mission officials said they could not discuss the drugs involved, and Asheville police also declined to be specific, saying the investigation is ongoing.

Ketamine, with a street name of “Special K,” is an anesthetic that is used mostly for animals in veterinary medicine.

The drug has become popular among young people attending parties and concerts. The effects include euphoria and an out-of-body experience, and some users experience a “K-hole,” a slang expression for a state of vivid hallucinations.