“I want something good to come of this tragedy.”
After the second death at a Stereosonic festival within weeks, the family of the young man who died on Saturday in Adelaide are calling for more to be done.
Stefan Woodward, 19, died after allegedly taking an overdose of pills, believed to be ecstasy, at the Stereosonic music festival at Bonython Park. He was rushed to hospital at 5pm on Saturday but died shortly afterwards.
The mother of Mr Woodward, Julie Davis, has spoken out about his tragic death after claims that her son was mocked for seeking help.
“I keep asking what could have stopped me from losing my son, and my other two sons from losing their darling brother,” she said.
“More than anything I want something good to come of this tragedy. I want organisers of events like these to make sure there is enough first aid on offer to make sure that no one gets turned away, and no one feels they need to wait.
“I want friends to look after each and make sure it’s never considered weak to ask for help. I want authorities to make sure kids are kept safe with free water. And I want young boys and girls like Stefan to never be too scared to ask for help.
“Mostly, I never want another family to go through what we are going through next now.”
Mr Woodward died after allegedly taking a dose of an orange pill with a dollar sign on it. Police released an image of the drugs allegedly linked with his death.
There were reports that Stefan Woodward was afraid to seek medical assistance after his friend’s teased him for falling ill.
On social media his friends have hit back at this saying it was untrue. One friend writing “Apparently someone in the line did say that to him.. but it wasnt any of his friends thats for sure.”
Another saying” I’m pretty sure everyone that new stefan [sic] and everyone that was mates with him knows if he felt like he was in trouble we would do anything we could to help him no matter what it would’ve taken.”
Members of Stefan’s family have paid tribute to the young man with his aunt writing: “We will stay strong for Stefan’s family❤. Julie, Scott, Johnathon & Javen my heartfelt prayers are with you guys. My not so lil Stefan, may you be at peace with your beloved Dad Neil. Love you all, just so tragic and there are just no words of comfort to make everything better❤????❤ xoxoxou”
His Lacrosse Club described him as a promising young player.
Two other people are fighting for their lives after attending the Adelaide Stereosonic and a Melbourne man is also in a critical condition. Yesterday 19 people in Brisbane were been taken to hospital overnight after attending the festival.
The tragic events come after Sylvia Choi, 25, died at the Sydney Stereosonic festival last weekend after taking illicit substances.
Stefan Woodward’s death has renewed calls for drug testing to take place at music festivals.
Top Comments
Not sure if it will make a difference, but perhaps so many more kids these days are turning to ecstasy because it is so cheap. $25 for a pill which will last you a few hours. If you were to drink alcohol, you're looking between $50-$150 depending on your choice of drink. I get that kids want that "off your face" feeling, it is fun and you get to have a laugh with your friends. If alcohol wasn't so expensive, maybe they wouldn't feel the need to turn to these drugs. At least with alcohol we know whats in it.
I know binge drinking is bad for you, but surely its better than the chemicals and god knows what else that's in drugs.
You're 100% right. Thats exactly why people do it. Everyone has such high cases of FOMO (myself included) that nobody wants to walk away for a toilet break or the like.
I think everyone thinks it wont happen to them or they look at their friends and see they're fine so they think they will be.