At least eight people died after panicking during the opening night of Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival in Houston (Texas, United States). Many injured are to be deplored. Eleven people with cardiac arrest were taken to hospital. Eight of them died. The BBC numbers nearly 50,000 spectators at the open-air festival. The panic movement occurred while the rapper was on stage.
In a statement, Astroworld regretted the incident, expressing that their heart was “with those who have lost loved ones”. It was 9.15 p.m. Friday night when the firefighters responded. “The crowd started to compress at the front of the stage and people started to panic“, told Samuel Peña, the Houston fire chief to our colleagues. While this compression injured several spectators, panic won the crowd.
Travis Scott, the founder of the festival, stopped several times during his 75-minute set, helping those in difficulty near the stage. The man expecting his second child has asked security to watch over the crowd and help those most affected to be evacuated. Ambulances passed through the crowd numerous times during the performance. In all, more than 300 spectators were treated for injuries and cuts on Friday.
The Astroworld festival, named after a famous missing regional theme park, is a special event in Houston. Travis Scott was already known for giving particularly intense live concerts for spectators. This is the third edition of the festival, where stars like Chief Keef, SZA, Lil Baby, Tame Impala or 21 Savage are expected.