Astroworld Festival crowd crush

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Astroworld Festival crowd crush
File:Reliant park aerial.jpeg
NRG Park, the location of Astroworld Festival. The venue itself is on the far left of this photograph.
Time c. 9:00–10:10 p.m. CDT[1]
Date November 5, 2021 (2021-11-05)
Location NRG Park
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Type Crowd crush
Cause Under investigation[2]
Deaths 8
Non-fatal injuries 300+ (25 hospitalized)[3]

On November 5, 2021, a crowd crush occurred during the first night of the Astroworld Festival, a music event in Houston, Texas, United States operated by American rapper Travis Scott.[4][5] Eight people died as a result, with the causes of death still under investigation.[3][2] A further 25 were hospitalized and more than 300 people were treated for injuries at the festival's field hospital.[4][6][7]

Background

The Astroworld Festival is an annual music festival run by American rapper Travis Scott, produced by Live Nation Worldwide, held at NRG Park in Houston, Texas. It is named after Six Flags Astroworld, which existed from 1968 until its closure in 2005. Scott has previously been cited for disorderly conduct related to his concerts; at Lollapalooza in 2015, Scott was arrested for and charged with disorderly conduct after inciting concertgoers to ignore security and rush the stage.[8] In 2017, Scott was arrested for similar conduct after a performance in northwest Arkansas.[9] In 2019, three people were injured in a stampede at Astroworld Festival.[10]

The 2021 festival had approximately 50,000 attendees,[5] though the venue could accommodate as many as 200,000 people.[11] The city of Houston organized security for the festival. Mayor Sylvester Turner stated that the city provided more security for the festival than it had for the 2021 World Series.[11] The Houston Police Department had 528 officers at the festival and event organizer Live Nation provided another 755 security officers.[3] Earlier in the day, hundreds of fans surged at the festival's perimeter in an attempt to get in, knocking over metal detectors and injuring one person.[10][7] Scott's performance was streamed live on Apple Music.[8]

Crush

File:Travis Scott - Openair Frauenfeld 2019 08.jpg
The crowd crush occurred when Travis Scott, founder of Astroworld Festival, was performing.

On the first night of the Astroworld Festival, Scott's appearance on the stage led people to push toward it, leading to a crush.[10] According to Houston fire chief Sam Peña, the crowd began "to compress toward the front of the stage" around 9:15 p.m.[12] Peña said that the crush was not caused by obstructed exits, but by issues close to the stage.[11] As people began to fall and get injured, additional panic ensued.[10] Peña said that most of the fatalities likely occurred after 9:30 p.m.[2]

Scott, along with stage crew, paused repeatedly during his 75-minute performance when he noticed attendees in distress near the stage.[7] Multiple attendees urged the festival's personnel to end the show early.[1] A concertgoer was filmed informing a cameraman that "people are dying," but another audience member told him that the crowd would take care of it.[11] Other audience members were filmed dancing on an ambulance in the crowd.[1]

According to Peña, medical personnel were quickly overwhelmed as the number of injuries surged.[13] The show's paramedics were seen performing CPR on unconscious attendees.[2] As medical personnel became overwhelmed, audience members attempted to help perform CPR as well.[10] Several people were administered Narcan, a medication used to block the effects of opioids.[14] At 9:38 p.m., officials declared a "mass casualty event" and 17 people were transferred to hospitals.[8][13] Houston police chief Larry Satterwhite then reached out to Live Nation promoters, who agreed to end the event early.[15] However, Scott proceeded to finish his set, which ended at 10:15 p.m.[16]

Victims

At least eight people were killed, ranging in age from 14 to 27.[3] Twenty-five others were evacuated to local hospitals, including 11 people found in a state of cardiac arrest.[3][4][10][2] In all, more than 300 people were treated for injuries in a field hospital at the festival.[6][7] Turner said that most of the injuries occurred in one particular area.[11]

Investigation

The causes of death are still under investigation.[2] Drug overdose is being investigated as a potential cause of cardiac arrest.[11] Scott and the event's organizers have coordinated with police as part of their investigation.[13]

TMZ reported that an unknown person allegedly injected multiple people in the crowd with a drug in an apparent targeted attack.[1] Police later confirmed that a security officer reportedly fell unconscious after feeling a prick to his neck, consistent with that of an injection. He was revived with Narcan.[14][17]

Aftermath

A reunification center was set up for families searching for relatives.[7] On November 6, Texas governor Greg Abbott said: "What happened at Astroworld Festival last night was tragic, and our hearts are with those who lost their lives and those who were injured in the terrifying crowd surge."[11] The second night of the festival on November 6 was canceled.[18][6]

Scott has offered his condolences to those who died during the incident, and has stated that he would cooperate with local officials[19] and with the Houston community to support the families in need.[20] Kylie Jenner, Scott's girlfriend, was criticized for her Instagram posts, including one with an ambulance attempting to make its way through the crowd.[21] Scott deleted tweets following the crush that may have encouraged reckless behavior by fans.[22]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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