New ‘zombie drug’ floors eight in mass overdose

UPDATE: More people feared to have overdosed on the hallucinogenic ‘zombie’ drug have been rushed to hospital on the Gold Coast overnight. The latest incident adds to police fears ahead of Schoolies.

Police help an overdose victim found wildly hallucinating at Mermaid Waters.

ANOTHER eight people feared to have overdosed on the hallucinogenic ‘zombie’ drug have been rushed to hospital on the Gold Coast overnight.

The mix of young men and women were treated by paramedics at licensed venues across Surfers Paradise and at a residence at Labrador.

It comes after eight people suffered severe hallucinogenic reactions and began behaving erratically at a Surfers Paradise hotel and Mermaid Waters house on Saturday.

Police fear there will be more victims as the Gold Coast party season begins with the GC600 motor race next weekend followed by Schoolies.

OVERNIGHT: Police fear a mystery “zombie” drug that left eight people in hospital on the Gold Coast could claim more victims during Schoolies and next weekend’s Gold Coast 600 motor race.

Seven men and a woman were rushed to hospital after taking what is believed to be the same drug in ­separate incidents at Surfers Paradise and ­Mermaid ­Waters early ­yesterday.

Two of the men were in a serious condition, with one placed in an induced coma.

Police had to tackle one wildly hallucinating man at Mermaid Waters, and they stepped in to protect paramedics in another overdose in Surfers ­Paradise.

Emergency services were called to the Islander hotel about 1am after three men, believed to be Victorian footballers, began behaving erratically.

Queensland Ambulance Service supervisor Paul Young said paramedics arrived to find the men “severely hallucinating” on an “unknown substance”.

“It made them hallucinate, seeing things that weren’t really there,’’ he said.

“They were doing weird things (like) jumping on furniture.”

Paramedics take another victim to hospital after the Mermaid Waters overdose.

At Mermaid Waters, some of the drug victims were swimming in a canal when police arrived at an Orvieto Ave home about 7.30am.

Flakka, a synthetic hallucinogen scientifically known as Alpha PVP, is new to Queensland but is a major problem in the US, where it is referred to as the “zombie” drug or “gravel”.

A stimulant, it increases alertness, attention and energy by combining the effects of methamphetamine and LSD.

Gold Coast police district duty officer Senior-Sergeant Bruce Pearce said the mass overdose should serve as a dire warning ahead of events including Schoolies and the GC600 V8 race.

“This is certainly extreme behaviour,” he said. “I’m sure it was a very scary situation for those people.

“We just want to get the message out there that these are dangerous drugs. You don’t know what’s in them ... so don’t take them.”