Wednesday night was crammed with several events, but the normally packed club Dragon-i emptied out early due to what people have reported as a gas attack!

According to an eyewitness account (from a sober friend,) the club was busy as usual when all of a sudden she began to feel a burning sensation in her nose. She thought it was just her, and touched her nose, which then felt painful. Shortly she began to notice those around her acting in a similar manner, and people abruptly rushed for the doors, as the club emptied.

She described a scene of pandemonium as people exited the club. Some of the less ethical, and perhaps less sober guys began grabbing bottles of alcohol left on the tables! (What’s more important, your life or a buzz from pilfered booze?)

Thankfully Dragon-i has a large outdoor terrace that made it easy for club-goers to seek relief and fresh air. Ambulances soon arrived caring for those with respiratory problems. According to my friend the gas was released at two different tables, rather than at a single location as if it were pepper spray. As a result of the incident, club Volar, usually the next stop on the party circuit was packed earlier than normal.

I’m not going to guess what the motive for the incident was, but the outcome could have been disastrous. An incident like this at a club that gets as crowded as Dragon-i could have resulted in a death. People get trampled under similar circumstances. Whether it was just a prank, or an attempt at hurting Dragon-i’s business, it deserves to be punished severely. The fact that modern clubs like Dragon-i and Volar are fitted with surveillance cameras makes me confident that the culprit will be apprehended.

The loss of business for the night isn’t as bad an outcome as had someone been seriously injured, however the punishment should be based on the potential severity of the reckless act.