After five people were killed in a shooting and subsequent stampede at a nightclub afterparty for the BPM Festival in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico over the weekend, city leaders have opted to ban future electronic music events.
A gunman reportedly entered the Blue Parrot club early Monday morning and opened fire. Four security personnel, three of whom were hired by festival organizers, were killed in the shootout. A fifth victim was crushed in the resulting crowd stampede, and another 15 people were injured. Mexican authorities are concerned the incident may indicate that rival drug cartels are advancing hostilities into the seaside resort city, potentially feuding over access to sell drugs to foreign tourists, the AP reports.
“We want these types of events to go,” Playa Del Carmen mayor Cristina Torres Gómez said at a press conference, according to Resident Advisor. “We won’t allow one more.”
Similar municipal bans on EDM events have sprouted up in Argentina following accidental deaths apparently related to recreational drug use. Playa Del Carmen’s ban is expected to affect Arena Festival, a gay and lesbian dance festival scheduled the first week of February. Arena Festival shared a statement on its Facebook page, but did not address the ban directly: