Travis Scott Astroworld concert dead aged between 14 and 27 as 8 killed in stampede and 13 remain hospitalized
THE eight people who were killed in the crowd surge at rapper Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival range in age from 14 to 27, according to Houston’s mayor.
Mayor Sylvester Turner also announced on Saturday that 13 people were still hospitalized and called the Friday night incident “a tragedy on so many different levels.”
Turner said that it’s too early at this time to draw conclusions about what led to the deadly surge.
Witnesses at the music festival said the crowd surged towards the stage as Scott was performing.
The sudden movement squeezed fans so tightly together that some were unable to breathe or move their arms.
An estimated 50,000 people were in attendance at the festival at NRG Park in Houston on Friday.
Officials in Texas said the crowd began to “compress towards the front of the stage” at around 9.15pm, sparking panic.
According to Houston Police Department Chief Troy Finer, 25 arrests were made at the festival, with 23 for trespassing, one for marijuana possession, and one for public intoxication.
Addressing a press briefing in the early hours of this morning, Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pena said: “We had at least eight confirmed fatalities today. We had scores of individuals injured at this event.”
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He added that a “mass casualty incident” was triggered at 9.38pm and investigations are ongoing.
Chief Pena told reporters: “At approximately 9.15pm the crowd began to compress towards the front of the stage and that caused some panic and it started causing some injuries.
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“People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic.”
Harrowing footage on social media shows the distressing scenes as paramedics perform CPR on several people in the crowd.
SCOTT’S STATEMENT ON TRAGEDY
In a statement on Saturday, Travis Scott said he was “absolutely devastated” by the huge loss of life.
The rapper wrote: “I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night.
“My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival.”
He added that police in Houston have his “full support” as they continue to investigate and thanked the emergency services for their quick response.
The show was called off shortly after the incident and the second day of the event was also canceled.
Astroworld is Travis Scott’s music festival and was being attended by a host of celebrities, including his pregnant girlfriend Kylie Jenner and her sister Kendall.
The event sold out its 100,000 tickets within an hour of going on sale in May, ABC 13 reported.
The Houston Chronicle reported that before tragedy struck, Scott had stopped a number of times during his 75-minute performance when he spotted fans in distress near the front of the stage.
He begged security to make sure they were all okay and get them out of the crowd safely.
Those who died had not been identified as of Saturday afternoon and a reunification post was set up at the nearby Wyndham Hotel to help families locate their loved ones.
A medical examiner will investigate the cause of deaths at the festival.