Ringwood North woman Rachael Dixon dead after allegedly drinking hallucinogenic concoction

A Creative Wellbeing Centre in Clunes has responded to the death of a 53-year-old mum on the weekend, saying the venue was hired out for a private event.

A Clunes business says the death of a woman who was believed to have consumed magic mushrooms happened at a private event.

In the second mushroom-related tragedy in Victoria in less than 10 months, 53-year-old Rachael Dixon, of Ringwood North, went into cardiac arrest allegedly after drinking the hallucinogenic concoction prepared at Soul Barn Creative Wellbeing Centre at midnight on Sunday.

In a statement on Wednesday, Soul Barn said Ms Dixon was at a private event, hired to external businesses and facilitators.

“There are no words to express the deep sorrow and shock we are feeling here at Soul following the tragic incident that occurred on April 13th,” its statement read.

Rachael Dixon died of a suspected cardiac arrest.

The 53-year-old mum died in the tragedy early Sunday morning.

“Soul Barn hires out workshop space to external businesses and facilitators. The event which took place on April 13th was a private event, and those facilitating the event do not work for or represent Soul Barn in any way.

“None of our regular therapists, staff or facilitators were present at any point during this event.”

In the statement, Soul Barn said it was closed while police complete their investigation.

“We share the shock and devastation of everyone involved and our hearts are with those families affected,” it read.

“We have no further information to share and we ask you to please respect the privacy of our small community.”

Two other guests who ingested the liquid were taken by ambulance in the early hours of Sunday to Ballarat Base Hospital where they stayed for observation.

They have since been discharged.

Tributes for loving, caring mum

Ms Dixon’s son, Matthew, paid tribute to his mother, a myotherapist and personal trainer who loved ­retreats and taking care of herself.

“Rest in peace,” he wrote.

“To the most loving, most caring person I’ve ever known, can’t thank you enough for everything you ever did for me and all the support you gave me; words can’t begin to describe how much I will miss you, wish I could give you one last hug.

“Love you infinity, Mum.”

Ms Dixon’s son Matthew paid tribute to his mother on social media.

Her sister, Penny Muller-Dixon, who lives in New Zealand, said the family was heartbroken at what had happened.

“So this happened, words cannot express the heartbreak we are all feeling,” she wrote on Facebook.

“Life is so fkn short, please hug and love those around you, #takentooyoung #lovemysister.”

Ms Dixon’s friend Jo Giudice said the woman’s son “gave her purpose” in life.

“Her son Matthew was her pride and joy,” she said.

“He gave her purpose and she was very proud of who he was and loved being with him.”

Ms Giudice said Ms Dixon will be remembered for her “beautiful soul”.

“Not only was she a very gifted myotherapist, but a very caring and empathetic human,” she said.

“I believe that helping people through her healing hands gave her much joy and definitely gave her patients much relief.”

Ms Dixon’s friend, Brian Curren, told the Herald Sun she was an adventurous woman.

“She loved trying new experiences, like ocean swimming, trail running and bike riding — and gave her all,” he said.

“She was committed to self-improvement and gaining knowledge to help others.

“She was a very dedicated personal trainer and myotherapist and was very particular in the advice she gave her clients.”

Mr Curren, a fellow personal trainer and triathlon coach, met Ms Dixon at a fitness seminar about five years ago.

He said he taught her how to run properly and swim in open water.

Mr Curren said he had “no hesitation” recommending her to his clients.

“(They) all thought highly of her,” he said.

“She was a good friend and we shared a common interest in helping others through our shared knowledge.”

A tribute posted to Facebook by Ms Dixon’s son.

Ms Dixon was described as a loving, caring person.

Mayor’s message on latest tragedy

Hepburn Shire Council Mayor Brian Hood said Ms Dixon’s death comes amid a “tough set of circumstances,” for the Clunes community, who are already grieving following death of Hannah McGuire.

“It’s something completely out of the blue and quite a nasty surprise. It’s just terrible,” Mr Hood said.

“Our hearts go out to the victim and their family and the other ladies that have been hospitalised.”

Mr Hood said the council is particularly aware of the effect of a number of tragedies that have struck the wider region in recent months, including the Daylesford crash which claimed the lives of five people in November, as well as recent floods and bushfires.

Mr Hood said while community members can be strong and “broad shouldered”, the “extraordinary” number of traumatic events in the region will inevitably weigh heavily on people.

“They (Clunes) have had a very tough run over the last few weeks with dual events that are tragic in their own regard,” he said.

“It’s a tight knit community. They are strong, resilient people and they do a brilliant job of supporting each other, but we do encourage people to reach out for professional help that’s available.”

Mr Hood said a significant number of Daylesford residents reached out directly to council and Central Highlands Rural Health to seek support following the Daylesford crash and encouraged other community members to do the same.

Mr Hood also reminded the community to be “very cautious” and “careful” about what they’re consuming.

One of the first people on the scene to help said they had been in regular contact with Soul Barn’s owner Michelle Mullins and continued to ­reassure her that the death was “not her fault”.

“She’s not doing very well as you’d imagine,” they said.

It is understood Ms Mullins was not at the property at the time but was notified of the incident soon after.

Moorabool detectives are probing the circumstances of Ms Dixon’s death and will interview the other people who were present.

The Fraser St retreat is an “alternative healing” practice that holds meditation and “sound healing” sessions.

Soul Barn offers guests caravan accommodation and homestays.

It is unclear whether Ms Dixon and the two hospitalised guests had attended an event at the retreat or gathered privately at the venue.

The Herald Sun has been told a local man performed CPR on the woman after being alerted to the incident by an emergency response app.

Inside the Soul Barn retreat at Clunes.

Soul Barn is advertised as an ‘alternative healing’ practice.

It is understood an urgent notification was sent on the Ambulance Victoria-run app GoodSAM Responder that a woman at Soul Barn was ­unconscious and in cardiac ­arrest.

A young Clunes man jumped into his car and grabbed a defibrillator before rushing to the scene, but the woman could not be saved.

The app alerts all registered individuals of unfolding medical emergencies and notifies them of the closest defibrillator.

The day after Ms Dixon’s sudden death, Soul Barn posted a social media statement saying that a coming event had been cancelled.

It is understood police do not believe poisonous death cap mushrooms were used in the drink consumed by the trio.

Austin Health – which runs the Victorian Poisons Information Centre – confirmed it was contacted for advice after the incident.

The VPIC can be contacted by health professionals in need of specialist advice or members of the public.

Clunes resident Jon Lock has known Soul Barn’s owner Ms Mullins for four years and described her as a “great lady”.

“She’s a lovely lady who does good, positive things for the town,” he said.

“I hope she’s staying low.”

Mr Lock said Clunes was a “very strong community” and would “get through” the tragedies that have struck the small regional town in recent weeks.

Other locals said they were “shocked” by Ms Dixon’s sudden death.

Nearby shop attendees in the regional town, 30km south of Ballarat, said they were unaware that Ms Dixon had died just a few doors down.

One man said he only found out about the tragedy after watching the evening news on Tuesday but said the death was “very sad nonetheless”.

A local business owner said the atmosphere around town was “very depressing”, following a series of tragedies in the area, including the death of 23-year-old local woman, Hannah McGuire.

“Everyone’s down about it, it rocked the town,” she told the Herald Sun on Wednesday.

Ms Dixon’s death comes less than two weeks after health authorities warned the public against foraging for wild mushrooms, saying poisonous varieties were now growing across the state.

It is also nine months since the state was rocked when three people were allegedly murdered after being cooked a mushroom lunch by Erin Patterson in Leongatha.

The accused triple murderer’s former parents-in-law Don and Gail Patterson and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson died from symptoms consistent with death cap mushroom poisoning after eating a beef wellington meal.

Ms Wilkinson’s husband, Ian, who spent a long time in intensive care, was the sole survivor.

A Healthcare Complaints Commissioner spokeswoman said she was unaware of any complaints or reports – past or present – about Soul Barn.

Soul Barn creative wellbeing centre in Clunes. Picture: Google

Paramedics were called to Soul Barn shortly before midnight on Saturday. Picture: Instagram

A picture from the Soul Barn Instagram page.

Soul Barn remained empty on Tuesday evening, with all lights in the premises turned off. Blinds around the perimeter of the building were pulled down but the store’s front window was stocked with crystals and incense.

Posters offering yoga nidra and sound immersion experiences as well as shamanic healing sessions were stuck to the businesses front door.

On the Friday night before Ms Dixon’s death, Soul Barn held an event called “A night with spirit” hosted by Benjamin Venes which was described as “a unique opportunity to experience his trance mediumship live”.

An advertisement for the gathering read: “Benjamin will sit for his friends in the spirit worlds as they subdue his mind and take him into the trance state.

“Experience communication from the other worlds with this rare form of mediumship.”

The session was from 7pm to 9pm.

A customer of a nearby store said the death was “devastating”.

Ms Dixon’s death comes after a spate of tragedies that have rocked the Ballarat area already this year, ­including the alleged murders of ­Hannah McGuire, Samantha Murphy and ­Rebecca Young.

Additional reporting by Laura Placella and Suzan Delibasic