At Least 8 Killed, Hundreds Injured in Crowd Surge at Astroworld Music Festival

At least 8 people were killed in a crowd surge incident during a performance by rapper Travis Scott at the Astroworld Festival in Houston.

In addition to at least 8 deaths, hundreds of people were treated for injuries and other medical issues following the incident Friday night. CNN reports:

At least eight people are dead and many others were injured after a crowd surged forward as rapper Travis Scott was on stage at the Astroworld Festival in Houston on Friday night, officials said.

“We had scores of individuals that were injured,” Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña during a news conference early Saturday morning.
About 50,000 people were at the sold-out outdoor music festival at NRG Park — the stadium complex where the Astrodome and the NRG Stadium stand — when the incident happened just after 9 p.m. CT, officials said.

“The crowd for whatever reason began to push and surge towards the front of the stage, which caused the people in the front to be compressed — they were unable to escape that situation,” Peña told CNN Saturday morning.

That sparked panic, and the situation worsened and overwhelmed security personnel there, he said.

“People began to fall out, become unconscious and it created additional panic,” Peña said during a press conference.

As of Saturday morning, the confirmed death toll stood at 8, and CNN reported that the youngest victim so far is a 10 year-old boy who is in critical condition.

The 2020 Astroworld Festival was canceled due to the pandemic, like many such gatherings.

Friday night’s incident was a tragic echo of 2019’s Astroworld Festival, at which three people were hospitalized when they were stampeded just before Travis Scott was to take the stage.

Watch above via CNN.