With schoolies season upon us, the Red Frog organisation is back again to help young people get through the week safely.
Schoolies has been running for ten days already in Byron and will continue through this week.
Red Frogs in Byron
The Red Frogs help schoolies by offering to walk them home at the end of a night, cooking pancakes, visiting (or cleaning) rooms, feeding them Allen’s Red Frogs and offering emotional support through what can often be a challenging week.
Over 1,400 Red Frog volunteers provide direct relief, safety and support to young people during Schoolies/Leavers Week across 11 locations.
Red frogs founder Andy Gourley said that the last five years have seen a massive ‘culture shift’ among schoolies
‘There are a lot more non-drinkers now, and people are ringing early if there’s any dramas.’
‘We’ve had very low presentations at the medic tent here in Byron so far.
‘Nationally, we’ve received 2,500 calls on our Red Frogs Hotline for our free pancakes
‘You can call the Red Frog Hotline anywhere at any time of day or night in Byron and the Red Frogs will come and do a pancake cook-up for you
‘The number for the Hotline is 1300 557 123.
Injection spiking in Byron nightclubs
‘We also provide chai and pancakes every night at main beach park from 9pm until 2am.
‘Our medic tent is open every night until 3am,’ Andy said.
It is important to be aware of the risks during this schoolies period, which include spiking of drinks and an emergence of needle spiking
Two 19-year-old girls believe they were ‘injection spiked’ in a Byron Bay Club, last Friday night.
Both girls woke up in the morning after a night out with identical bruises on their hips, bearing the marks of apparent injections.
Both girls were reportedly sick for days following.
Dr Shirin Lakhani, a cosmetic doctor specialising in women’s health, has said that ‘some needles are so thin ‘you can barely feel them going in.’
The same drugs used to spike drinks are used in needle spiking. These include Rohypnol (roofie) or Gamma Hydroxybutyrate (GHB).
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