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At least 8 people killed and more injured during stampede at Astroworld Festival in Houston
At least eight people are dead and many others were injured Friday night at the Astroworld Festival in Houston, Fire Department Chief Samuel Peña said.
Peña told reporters the surge and compression of the crowd toward the stage at NRG Park occurred while rapper Travis Scott was performing around 9pm Friday night (1pm Saturday AEDT).
“We had scores of individuals that were injured,” Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña said during a news conference early Saturday morning.
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The cause of deaths is pending the medical examiner’s determination, Peña said.
The fire chief described what unfolded as a “mass casualty” incident, saying it began as the crowd began “to compress toward the front of the stage” around 9-9.15pm local time (1-1.15pm Saturday AEDT).
That caused some panic, and it started causing some injuries, he said.
“People began to fall out, become unconscious and it created additional panic,” Peña said.
He said 17 patients were transported to local hospitals, 11 of whom were in cardiac arrest.
In addition, more than 300 people were treated at the field hospital set up near the festival, Peña said,
The concert drew about 50,000 attendees, he said.
Video from earlier Friday taken by CNN affiliate KTRK showed hundreds of people rushing through a VIP entrance to the Astroworld Festival — knocking over metal detectors and ignoring security personnel before the gates were secured by officers on horseback.
Astroworld organisers did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment early Saturday morning.
Houston-born rapper Travis Scott’s third annual Astroworld Festival was scheduled to run from Friday through Saturday, according to the event’s website.
The festival, which was called off shortly after several people began suffering injuries, was slated to feature artists including SZA, Bad Bunny and 21 Savage.
