Thousands descend on French village for illegal 'Teknival'

French authorities on Friday said tens of thousands of people had swarmed a small village for an illegal techno festival.

According to authorities, organizers of the so-called "Teknival" did not have a permit to host the event being held at a farm in the central village of Villegongis in Indre.

Radio broadcaster France Info reported 20,000 people were already at the event, which had been taking place since Thursday.

"On the night of May 17 to 18, a large number of vehicles gathered in the agglomeration of Chateauroux before reaching the place called Fouillereau in the municipality of Villegongis in order to organize a teknival," the Indre local authority tweeted.

Authorities decide against evacuating site

The broadcaster reported that upwards of 40,000 people were expected to attend the event, which is causing a headache for local authorities.

Authorities had not received advanced warning about the location of the Teknival, which is famous throughout Europe, and decided not to evacuate the site in an effort to avoid greater harm.

"We will not turn them away, there are too many," the farmer who owns the site told broadcaster BFMTV, adding that he just wished the revelers would not leave empty beer cans and trash behind.

Injuries reported

A local official told a press conference that three people had been seriously injured in accidents that had occurred at the site.

One of the injured was a 40-year-old man who was run over after falling asleep beneath a car, allegedly under the influence of alcohol or other drugs.

More than 30 people also required medical assistance and seven people had to be taken to hospital for treatment.

Civil defense, the Red Cross, volunteers and 240 police officers have been deployed, the Department of Indre said on Friday.

While authorities allowed the event to proceed, the organizers are under investigation.

kb/sms (dpa, EFE)