ROTHBURY, Mich. (WOOD) — The heat wave sweeping West Michigan is a major concern in Rothbury, as tens of thousands of people flock to the second weekend of the Electric Forest Festival.
"To have sustained mid 90s temperatures — which is possible I understand — is something that we haven't seen yet," Michigan State Police 1st Lt. Jeffrey White said. "The high heat and the high heat index worries us for safety."
White said the first weekend of the festival went smoothly with no deaths or serious injuries reported and only a couple dozen were in trouble, mostly for drug or theft-related offenses.
But this weekend could be the hottest on record at the festival, and White said they have already seen people fainting in the extreme heat.
"When you're in a crowd this size, and especially in some of the lines that form, the ambient temperature could be 10 degrees hotter even than that what is out there because of the body heat," White explained.
To keep concert-goers safe, troopers and medics are roaming the grounds and watching out for issues heat-related or otherwise.
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