Urgent drug warning as one person left fighting for life after Parklife Festival

A person is reportedly fighting for life after being rushed to hospital following Parklife.

They were described as being in a 'critical condition' following the two-day festival.

It comes after the Manchester Evening News reported that five people were taken to hospital over the weekend 'critically ill' after taking high strength 'Skype' ecstasy pills.

It is understood some of those patients have been discharged.Police say they cannot confirm if the person fighting for their life is one of the five taken to A&E over the weekend.

A number of people were admitted to North Manchester and Fairfield Hospital for alcohol and drug-related illness.

It is thought at least five needed emergency treatment after taking what doctors believe to high-strength ecstasy pills.

The pills, stamped with the 'Skype' logo, are thought to be three times stronger than ordinary batches.

Dr Karenza Moore, a drugs analyst from the University of Salford, said: "It's not necessarily the dose that's the problem, it's not knowing.

So if someone's bought a 300 milligram pill, it's got 300 milligrams of MDMA in it, that person should probably be taking it in thirds."

Drug awareness and testing charity The Loop shared an image of the tablet on Twitter on Saturday night saying it had been 'linked to welfare cases'.

The pills are thought to contain a high strength of 250 to 300mg of MDMA - three times the usual amount found in ecstasy pills.

Some 42 people were arrested during the music festival, most for drug offences.

There were 25 arrests on Saturday and 17 on Sunday, GMP confirmed.

Among the arrests was a 20-year-old man who was detained on suspicion of possession with intent to supply.

Officers seized a quantity of drugs and psychoactive substances from the man as festival-goers arrived for the second day of the festival.