Ravers lose vision at laser light show
Dozens of partygoers in Russia suffered eye damage, officials said

MOSCOW – Dozens of partygoers at an outdoor rave near Moscow
last week have lost partial vision after a laser light show burned their
retinas, Russian health officials said on Monday.

Moscow city health
department officials confirmed 12 cases of laser-blindness at the Central
Ophthalmological Clinic, and daily newspaper Kommersant said another 17 were
registered at City Hospital 32 in the center of the capital.

Attendees at
the July 5 Aquamarine Open Air Festival in Kirzhach, 50 miles northeast of
Moscow, began seeking medical help days after the show, complaining of eye and
vision problems, health officials told Reuters.

“They all have retinal
burns, scarring is visible on them. Loss of vision in individual cases is as
high as 80 percent, and regaining it is already impossible,” Kommersant quoted a
treating ophthalmologist as saying.

Attendees said heavy rains forced
organizers to erect massive tents for the all-night dance party, and lasers that
normally illuminate upwards into the sky were instead partially refracted into
the ravers’ eyes.

“I immediately had a spot like when you stare into the
sun,” rave-attendee Dmitry told Kommersant.

“After three days I decided
to go to the hospital. They examined me, asked if I had been at Open Air, and
then put me straight in the hospital. I didn’t even get to go home and get my
stuff,” he said.

Cosmic Connection, promoters of the Aquamarine rave,
were unreachable and did not list contact numbers on their Web site.

Industry Web site www.laserfx.com said focused laser light can cause eye damage
almost instantly.

The owner of a Moscow laser rental company told Reuters
the accidental blindings were due to “illiteracy on the part of technicians.”

“It was partly the rain, but also partly the size of the laser. Somebody set
up an extremely powerful laser for such a small space,” said Valentin Vasiliev,
who said his company did not provide the Aquamarine lasers.

Copyright
2008 Reuters.

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