About 50,000 people were gathered at Houston’s NRG Park as Travis Scott performed.
The Texas authorities are investigating this Saturday the tragedy that occurred the day before in a gigantic rap concert, in which 8 people died and at least 17 were injured.
About 50,000 people were gathering at Houston’s NRG Park on Friday night when the crowd began to push onto the stage as artist Travis Scott performed, setting off chaotic scenes.
“I saw people jump over the barriers and they couldn’t breathe, it was horrible,” he told the AFP Gavyn Flores, who attended Scott’s concert and was near a barricade without being able to move for hours.
“People were trying to get out but they couldn’t move,” explained the 18-year-old.
The head of the Houston fire department, Samuel Peña, said at a press conference that “the crowd began to crowd in front of the stage. This created a movement of panic that caused people to be injured ”.
Eight people died and between 17 and 23 were injured, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said.
Turner declared to CNN that authorities are watching video footage, speaking to witnesses, concert organizers and people who were hospitalized.
“We are analyzing everything,” he said.
Houston is regularly home to big concerts, he said, but “there has never been anything like this.”
More than 300 people were treated at the scene for minor injuries on the first night of the two-day Astroworld Festival, which Scott helped organize, authorities said.
Scott stopped his act multiple times when he saw fans in anguish near the stage, reported the Houston Chronicle, a local medium.
Scott ‘devastated’
Survivors described chaotic scenes, with people crushed and others struggling to breathe.
“People were pushed, trampled, and when I struggled to get out of there, I saw people on the ground,” he told the AFP Logan Morris, a Dallas resident who attended the show.
“I am absolutely devastated by what happened last night,” Scott tweeted on Saturday. “My prayers are with the families and all those affected by what happened at the Astroworld Festival.”
More than 360 policemen and 240 security guards were present for the festival.
A Harris County official, Lina Hidalgo, said it was “an extremely tragic night.”
“We are heartbroken, people go to these events to have a good time, to make memories,” he added.
Houston Police said events unfolded quickly.
“In the space of just a few minutes, all of a sudden, several people experienced some kind of cardiac arrest,” said Deputy Police Chief Larry Satterwhite.
Videos circulating on social media show paramedics resuscitating fainted people as the concert continued.
Other images posted on social media showed dozens of people pouncing on doors, while security guards are unable to contain the flow.
Several people can also be seen falling, knocking down the metal detectors at the stadium entrance, although it is unclear if that incident is related to the deaths.
Astroworld organizers canceled the remainder of the festival, which was scheduled to continue on Saturday.
Astroworld is a music festival created by Scott himself in 2018. The 29-year-old rapper, who has a son with reality star Kylie Jenner, became known in 2013 and has had six Grammy nominations.
Other concerts were scheduled over the weekend such as that of the rappers Chief Keef and 21 Savage, and the Australian rock group Tame Impala.
As Scott performed late on Friday, he was joined onstage by Canadian rap superstar Drake. (I)
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
