What happened at the Hong Kong NFT Apefest and why are attendees going blind?

The NFT fad may have come to a merciful end but those caught up in it aren’t out of the woods yet. However, while most people who bought NFTs suffered financial damage, the unfortunate attendees of Hypebeast/Yuga Labs’ Hong Kong “Apefest” have been blinded.

The Apefest took place on Friday in Hong Kong, boasting a stage that included several large UV lights. The use of UV lights at a show like this isn’t unusual, so long as they are the safe UV-A ‘blacklight’ bulbs that merely make light surfaces glow purple.

What you don’t want at a concert are UV-C lamps. These emit short-wave radiation that can be used to sterilize medical equipment, for food sanitation, or to treat water for consumption. Fortunately, there are strict rules on which bulbs to use for concerts, so only the most stupid or incompetent events organizer would install giant UV-C lights at a concert…

What happened?

You can probably see where this is going. The attendees of the Hong Kong Apefest spent hours bathed in the sterilizing glow of multiple Philips TUV 30W G30 T8 light bulbs. These emit 12 watts of UV-C radiation and are intended to be used for air and water purification.

So let’s check in on the attendees:

Looks like the Hong Kong ERs had a busy day:

Not a fun time:

The worst hangover:

Many have been exhibiting the same symptoms:

Pictures later emerged of the stage set-up, and… it doesn’t look great:

The aftermath

Those exposed to this large amount of UV-C radiation are suffering from a condition known as Photokeratitis. This is essentially sunburn of the eye (specifically the cornea) and is just as painful as it sounds.

The intense pain caused by this condition has no easy treatment. Anesthetic eye drops can work in the short term, but continued use runs the risk of losing the eye altogether. Fortunately, in most instances simply confining yourself to a dark room will allow the cornea to heal after around 72 hours, though lingering pain from the eye damage is likely depending on the severity and length of exposure.

History repeats itself

Incredibly, this isn’t even the first time Hypebeast has blinded its guests. As per the post below, Hypebeast organized a party six years ago in Hong Kong that also used disinfecting UV lamps:

Yuga Labs is yet to put out any kind of statement acknowledging its blinded guests, though it seems some are already considering legal action (though liability may then be passed on to contractors).

Hopefully, those afflicted will get their sight back soon. Sure they may be NFT bros, but as annoying as they can be, they probably don’t deserve to be blinded by a crappy concert run by dangerously incompetent idiots.