Smokers stub out Six60 dream

A Six60 concert that was deemed ‘‘smokefree'' left one young fan in hospital unable to breathe.

Now the boy's mum, Jacinta Heath, is hopeful organisers will better promote and police their claims of fresh air.

The Matamata mum took her family to the Six60 concert on Saturday at Western Springs Stadium in Auckland.

Her son, Riley, 8, has asthma, but because the event was advertised as ‘‘all-ages'' and ‘‘smokefree'', Heath packed an inhaler and high spirits.

‘‘My son loves Six60, he'll happily sing along and, because it was all-ages and smoke-free, we thought it would be fine,'' Heath said.

‘‘We were on the embankment and made ourselves cosy, and halfway through Drax Project and after Sons of Zion, that's when everybody pulled out their marijuana.

‘‘There were people smoking behind us and next to us . . . and Riley started coughing.

‘‘But towards the end of Drax Project, the inhaler literally did nothing, and Riley was really short of breath.''

Heath took Riley to St John Ambulance staff, and even while Riley was receiving treatment, there were still groups of people smoking around them outside.

‘‘If it had been pushed a bit more that it was a smokefree event, or if it was better signposted or if there was a designated smoking area, it probably would've been a completely different scenario,'' Heath said.

‘‘I'm well aware that in such a big venue with so many people, it is really hard to patrol.

‘‘I expected there to be people smoking, just not to the extent that it was.''

Riley was given a nebuliser to administer medication, but was sent to Starship Hospital after clutching his chest and saying he couldn't breathe.

Heath said her son had never been hospitalised over asthma before.

‘‘He's extremely gutted. He was crying because Six60 came on when he was in the ambulance and he was trying to peek out the window.

‘‘He's got such a big heart and that's what guts me the most, that he missed it, and he didn't want to miss it.''

Heath said Riley, although still tired from the event, was on the mend.

She hoped organisers would better enforce their smokefree claim in the future, and that concert-goers took into account the effect smoking had on young asthma sufferers.

Six60 promoter Dave Munro said it was unfortunate Riley suffered an asthma attack during the show.

‘‘It's a real shame that he was affected by the smoke that was around him and that it ruined his concert experience, but it's really hard to police people smoking, especially when there's 50,000 people.''