COACHELLA STARTS WITH DRUGS RAID + ARRESTS

Drug arrests marred the start of this year's (07) Coachella Festival in California on Friday (27Apr07) when federal officials arrested a Mexican group selling methamphetamine on site. Officials arrested 16 people and seized a cache of 50 guns and methamphetamine in a raid on the site near Indio, California. A strike force had been tracking the gang of drug smugglers and dealers for the past year. The gang members have been particularly active in the Coachella Valley, and they were hoping to make a killing at the three-day music and arts festival, which this year is headlined by Bjork, Red Hot Chili Peppers and a reformed Rage Against The MAChine. The arrests weren't the only sour note of the first day of the 2007 festival - organisers were forced to hand out free water supplies in the car park as fans picking up tickets on site were forced to queue for up to three hours. Many fans also complained about the traffic problems leading to the site. Heat also left fans struggling on day one of Coachella - event staff turned sprinklers on all over the site on Friday afternoon and evening in a bid to prevent the whole area from becoming a dustbowl.