Las Vegas police credit planning for few incidents through EDC weekend

And that's a wrap.

The Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas ended Monday morning without the controversy that has plagued the festival in other cities.

Nothing happened during the three nights the festival was held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that would concern police if EDC returns, Las Vegas police spokesman Bill Cassell said.

Las Vegas police and event organizers, Insomniac Events, planned for several months to avoid problems at the electronic music festival, known for its fans' use of the drug Ecstasy.

The festival drew an average of 80,000 people each night. Police reported 29 felony arrests, all but three for narcotics, and 31 misdemeanor arrests during the three days.

There were no deaths at the Las Vegas festival and relatively few medical incidents.

"I believe that, in part, our planning paid off," Cassell said. "From a law enforcement standpoint, this was a success."

EDC moved to Las Vegas this year after Los Angeles banned raves because of the death of a teenage girl from an Ecstasy overdose in 2010. Two people died when the tour stopped for a night in Dallas earlier this month.

About 330 festival-goers were treated -- mostly for dehydration -- during the first two nights of the festival, and 17 were taken to the hospital.

Police did not have the number of medical calls or hospitalizations from the final day of the festival and said to contact MedicWest, the private ambulance service that worked the event. MedicWest officials said Monday that they didn't have the numbers either because all of the personnel who worked the overnight event were still sleeping Monday afternoon.

There were some traffic problems around the speedway at the start and end of the festival, but generally the traffic flow associated with the Electric Daisy Carnival was smooth all weekend, Nevada Highway Patrol Sgt. Kevin Honea said.

On Friday night, attendees encountered a bottleneck at the Interstate 15 exit to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which caused about a half-hour delay. The next two nights, troopers made adjustments, such as adding a second drop-off point for taxis and opening another gate in the parking area. And organizers added extra shuttle buses.

"Any issues that were identified Friday were remedied by Saturday," Honea said.

The worst congestion associated with the festival was Monday morning when those leaving the event mingled with southbound commuters on Interstate 15. About 80,000 people attended Day Three, according to organizers' count. Traffic along southbound Interstate 15 was backed up for several hours after revelers began dispersing at about 6 a.m. Monday.

"This morning was the most hectic simply because you had people coming from the event on top of the regular morning commute, which amounted to a lot of cars on the roads," Honea said Monday. "It was about what we expected."

Honea said troopers responded to a handful of disabled vehicles along the freeway, but the majority of accidents and DUI citations over the weekend were not related to the show.

"The worst-case scenario never materialized," he said.

The same was true for Las Vegas police, who had planned extensively, Cassell said. An estimated 160 officers and 1,000 security officers policed the event.

Police released daily totals of incidents at the festivals: On the first day, police reported 14 felony arrests -- 12 of which were related to the use or sale of drugs -- and five hospitalizations. On the second day, there were nine drug arrests and 12 people hospitalized. The third day saw six felony arrests; five were drug-related, and one was an auto burglary.

On Saturday, police announced the arrest of two California men who authorities said were trying to sell counterfeit wristbands to the rave. The wristbands were reportedly estimated at a value of $1 million.

Pathomrat Neil Kunawongse, 35, of Hacienda Heights, Calif., and Aaron Leonard Hernandez, 37, of Corona, Calif., were arrested on charges of obtaining money under false pretenses, attempted forgery and conspiracy to commit a crime. Kunawongse also was arrested on charges of burglary and possession of stolen property.

All of the wristbands were recovered, and none was sold by the suspects, police said.

Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0283.