There was a second (chronologically, the first, actually) fatality near Live Oak that week. Very poor copy and headline writing of the online article made it initially seem that there were two deaths at SOSMP, but that's incorrect. There was only one death at the SOSMP.
Prayers to the family of the guy from Sebastian. I agree that the 'friends', were no friends at all.
JMO, but it doesn't really matter, the manner of death. The manner of death, as far as I'm concerned, was this poor fella had nobody watching out for him. It need not have been opiates; back in the 1980s I damn near drowned at a hotel at 1am, by drinking beer all night and deciding a late night hot tub soak was a good idea. I passed out and slipped under the water... I woke up, coughing out what seemed like a gallon of highly chlorinated pool water. Not pleasant. Guess what? I was *by myself*, when that happened.
He could have been stone cold sober, and slipped on a mossy rock, and hit his head on the way down. There's no telling, unless you want to read the autopsy report, whenever that's released. I don't.
I've helped many a stranger find their way at festivals. This is tragic, but it seems (from what we know) that it was avoidable.
Look out for each other. I think it goes hand in hand with Be Kind.