A woman listens to music by Calvin Harris at the Circuit Grounds stage during the final night of the 2014 Electric Daisy Carnival on Sunday, June 22, 2014, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Published Monday, June 23, 2014 | 7:19 a.m.
Updated Monday, June 23, 2014 | 8:14 a.m.
Neon lights bled into the sunset over the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday night as hordes of electronic dance music fans arrived to celebrate the third and final night of the Electric Daisy Carnival.
About 134,000 people packed the speedway for a last night of surreal revelry soundtracked by some of the world’s top DJs.
Traffic and road congestion plaguing the festival’s first two nights appeared to ease on Sunday, with lines to enter the parking lots and festival gates moving slowly but steadily. But the crowds departing the speedway Monday morning choked traffic on Interstate 15 for morning commuters.
The closing night festivities kept fans partying until sunrise to the beats of headlining DJs such as Las Vegas nightclub residents Calvin Harris and Axwell, as well as rising young talent like London DJ-producer Maya Jane Coles.
Fans explored the festival’s dozens of interactive art installations — including a black-light maze and LED-lit caterpillar — and carnival rides.
But it was perhaps EDC’s 80,000-person Kinetic Field main stage that stole the show. Its fireworks, pyrotechnics and Bellagio-style dancing fountains wrapped up EDC’s fifth year in Las Vegas in unprecedented decadence and style.
The festival’s unprecedented attendance — up some 20,000 people from last year’s nightly attendance — left some concerned that EDC Las Vegas may be getting too big.
Liza Boucher, 25, of San Jose, Calif., complained that the speedway felt overcrowded, with insufficient water stations, trash cans and staff to accommodate the throngs of attendees. She and her friends said the festival should consider expanding to two weekends or add an additional day.
Metro Police reported that officers made 25 felony arrests on the festival’s final night, all for narcotics-related offenses. Two people were also arrested on counts of driving under the influence of alcohol and 13 people were arrested on misdemeanor offenses, police said.
In addition, police handed out nine unspecified misdemeanor citations and five traffic citations.
Metro reported 234 medical calls during the final session, with eight people transported to an area hospitals for treatment.
One festivalgoer died as he left the speedway grounds early Saturday morning after the festival’s opening night.
Montgomery Tsang, 24, of San Leandro, Calif., was pronounced dead at 6:12 a.m. after reportedly collapsing in the speedway parking lot. Results from an autopsy are pending.
With Electric Daisy Carnival pumping $278 million dollars into the local economy in 2013 and two new dance music festivals from organizers Insomniac Events coming to Las Vegas later this year, the momentum of EDM’s mainstream growth shows no signs of slowing.
Many are left wondering just how much bigger the neon spectacle can get.
“I like how massive it is. You get lost in it. You come for the music, but you also come for the people,” said 26-year-old festivalgoer Jacob Vinzert of San Jose, Calif. “Eventually it’s gonna stop, but for now, it is what it is. I’m just happy it ever got this big.”
For more Electric Daisy Carnival news, see our complete coverage.
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