November 06, (THEWILL) – Authorities have confirmed at least eight people dead after a crowd surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival.
The concert was held at Houston’s NRG Park, United States (US) on Friday, November 5 and, according to available information, was attended by approximately 50,000 people, including Travis’s girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, and her sister Kendall.
Houston Fire Chief, Samuel Peña, speaking at a press conference on Saturday disclosed that the surge happened at 9pm when Travis Scott was on stage to perform.
“People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic.
“17 people were taken to the hospital, including 11 in cardiac arrest,” Pena said.
However, Peña stated that authorities are not sure of the cause of the eight deaths until the medical examiner completes the investigation.
Houston Police Executive Assistant, Chief Larry Satterwhite, stated that the promoters of the concert had to end it due to the crowd surge.
“Suddenly we had several people down on the ground, experiencing some type of cardiac arrest or some type of medical episode and then we immediately started doing CPR, and moving people right then, and that’s when I went and met with the promoters, and Live Nation, and they agreed to end early in the interest of public safety,” Satterwhite said.
The Astroworld Festival in a statement on Saturday condoled with those who lost loved ones and cancelled the second day of the festival.
The terse statement read: “Our hearts are with the Astroworld Festival family tonight especially those we lost and their loved ones.
“We’re focused on supporting local officials however we can. With that in mind the festival will no longer be held on Saturday.”
About the Author
