HAMPTON, Va. — Some Phish fans are leaving Hampton a little lighter than when they arrived for the band’s weekend reunion. Police said Monday they confiscated about $1.2 million in illegal drugs and more than $68,000 in cash from concertgoers.
Authorities also arrested 194 Phish fans during the three-night celebration of the band’s return to the stage after a nearly five-year absence.
Most of the arrests were for drug possession, use and distribution, police said.
Tourism officials had estimated 75,000 fans would be coming to the coastal Virginia city. Nearly 200 law enforcement officers worked the weekend event, with the Vermont-based band picking up the tab.
With its devoted fans and improvisational ambition, Phish has long been bound in the popular imagination with the Grateful Dead.
“I was 5 years old when Jerry Garcia died, and 13 when Coventry happened, so I’ve been waiting all my life to come to a show like this,” Ben Cooper, 18, a high school senior from Knoxville, Tenn.
The Hampton shows won rave reviews, with the near-universal opinion that Phish is far tighter and more energetic than the band that toured five or six years ago. The group played for about 3 1/2 hours each night, and all of the sets are available as free downloads at .
The New York Times contributed to this report.
