Houston Police Chief Reportedly Warned Travis Scott About ‘Energy in the Crowd’ Before Astroworld Tragedy
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner personally warned Travis Scott about the crowd at Astroworld before the concert turned deadly, according to the New York Times.
“The Houston police chief, who knows Mr. Scott personally and felt the musician had been trying to do good for his hometown, said that he visited Mr. Scott in his trailer before his show on Friday and conveyed concerns about the energy in the crowd, according to a person with knowledge of the chief’s account,” reported the Times.
Finner was reportedly concerned that the “energy” of Scott’s fans had been building up for months, as they were eager to see the rapper live again following the hiatus caused by the pandemic.
At least eight people were killed, and hundreds injured, during a crowd surge incident while Scott was performing on Friday night.
“The one person who can really call for and get a tactical pause when something goes wrong is that performer. They have that bully pulpit and they have a responsibility,” said Fire Chief Samuel Peña on Sunday. “If somebody would have said, ‘Hey, shut this thing down and turn on the lights until this thing gets corrected’ — and that coming from the person with the mic — I think could have been very helpful.”
50,000 fans, including elementary school children, showed up to the Astroworld Festival in Houston this weekend, driving down from other Texas cities and even flying into the state from across the country.
CNN spoke to some of those who attended the deadly festival, one calling the experience “hell” while recounting the bodies slamming into each other as the rapper performed.
“Absolutely not,” one attendee told CNN’s Rosa Flores when asked if she would attend another one of Scott’s concerts. “I won’t go to anything — not just Travis Scott. I’m really scared to even be around people in full capacity situations.”
During a news conference Saturday, Finner also confirmed a report that an officer received a needle prick from an unknown person while working the festival.
“We do have a report of a security officer, according to the medical staff, that was out and treated him last night, that he was reaching out to restrain or grab a citizen and he felt a prick in his neck. When he was examined, he went unconscious,” he told reporters. “They administered NARCAN. He was revived and the medical staff did notice a prick that was similar to a prick that you would get if somebody was trying to inject.”
Three lawsuits have since been filed on behalf of concertgoers who were injured at the music festival — the defendants including Scott, Drake, and entertainment company Live Nation.
Ryan MacLeod, a lawyer for one of the attendees who filed a lawsuit against Scott, pointed to the history of injuries at Scott’s concerts while on CNN Newsroom on Monday.
“He knew that there were problems. He knew that there were serious emergencies,” he said. “He knew that first responder needed to do their jobs. CPR was literally being administered while he’s still singing about being the highest in the room. That cannot ever happen again.”
Watch above, via CNN.
