Laser Show Harms Russian Concertgoers's Vision

Tue Jul 15, 9:08 AM EDT
MOSCOW — A laser show at a music festival damaged the vision of more than 30 people, according to Russian news reports.

Some concertgoers lost up to 80 percent of their vision after attending the Aquamarine Music Festival on July 5, the newspaper Kommersant reported Monday.

Twenty people were being treated in Moscow hospitals, said Elena Grishina, the head doctor at the Moscow Ophthalmological Hospital, the RIA-Novosti news agency reported.

"It is just a deterioration in the sharpness of the eyesight, not a burn," she was quoted as saying, and said she could not confirm the injuries came from lasers.

"The treatment is not very pleasant. It involves a lot of needles," Grishina said. "But all the patients are in optimistic spirits, and we are hoping for a good result."

According to the reports, concertgoers said the festival's dance floor was covered by a canopy because it was raining. The lasers were pointed horizontally under the tent instead of into the sky, which led to the injuries, the reports said.

"After five or ten minutes on the dance field, I couldn't see anything," a young man in sunglasses identified as a concertgoer said on NTV television. "I could see out of my left eye, but my right eye is all fog."

The festival was held in the Vladimir region east of Moscow. During the summer, techno music enthusiasts often organize open-air raves on empty fields outside Moscow.

The injured concertgoers plan to take legal action against the festival's organizers, NTV reported.

A representative of the Vladimir regional government said the festival was organized illegally without proper permits. Police in the town of Kirzhach, where the festival was held, refused to comment.

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