One dead, another in hospital after sweat lodge ritual

A purification ritual borrowed from Native Americans has left a 37-year-old Victorian man dead and another man, 30, in hospital at Port Augusta, South Australia.

Both are believed to have suffered severe dehydration after taking part in a sweat lodge ritual in which participants inside a teepee-like structure pour water over hot rocks, lifting the temperature to up to 60C. Participants might stay in the tent for several hours.

Australian Medical Association spokesman Dr William Heddle said the effects of severe dehydration on young people often went unnoticed until it was too late to get help.