At least eight people have died and several others injured in a crowd surge during a Travis Scott concert at Astroworld Festival in Houston.
The incident occurred on the opening night of the 29-year-old rapper’s festival at the NRG Park in Houston.
According to the Houston Chronicle, about 50,000 of the sold-out crowd surged toward the Sicko Mode rapper.
The report says security was unable to control the stampede, resulting in one of the deadliest concerts in U.S history.
Travis Scott has canceled the remaining tour dates following the tragic event. Artists set to perform includes SZA, Tame Impala, and Earth, Wind & Fire.
Eight confirmed dead at Astroworld concert
Reports suggest at least eight people died during the crowd surge, with hundreds more injured.
An eyewitness claimed more than ten people were described as having a cardiac event.
Victims may have included children; however, their identities s have not been made public at the time of writing this report.
It is unclear to investigators what or who started the deadly crowd surge.
The Houston Chronicle reports that Scott stopped the concert multiple times to demand security attend to distressed concert-goers.
Furthermore, the stampede occurred during the rapper’s closing performance in a set that included a guest appearance from Drake.
Eyewitness describes the chaos at crowd surge
Several eyewitnesses have released footage from the crowd surge and described the events on social media.
“The rush of people became tighter and tighter. .. Breathing became something only a few were capable. The rest were crushed or unable to breathe in the thick hot air,” she wrote and went on to describe her friend’s condition.
“My friend began to gasp for breath, and she told me we needed to get out. We tried. There was nowhere to go. The shoving got harder and harder. If someone’s arms had been up, it was no longer a possibility to put it down.”
The Instagram user, who goes by the name seannafaith, described being unable to breathe due to the mass sway of people tightly packed in the crowd. She goes on to describe numerous people screaming as some are trampled or simply unable to move.
“It was like watching a Jenga tower topple. Person after person were sucked down… You were at the mercy of the wave.”
Travis Scott is a rapper from Houston, and the festival is held every year in the city. Other artists such as Chief Keef and 21 Savage were set to perform at the festival, which is now canceled.
typical.