Astroworld Festival – latest: Police launch criminal probe as Travis Scott promises to help victims’ families

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At least 8 dead, several others injured during Astroworld music festival, officials say

Travis Scott and the organisers of the Astroworld event that left eight people dead have been sued by an injured concertgoer who branded it a “predictable and preventable tragedy.”

Lawyers for Manuel Souza filed a petition in Harris County District Court suing Scott, event organiser ScoreMore and concert giant Live Nation over the Friday night incident, according to Billboard.

At least two investigations are now underway into the deadly stampede which took placed at the opening night of the Astroworld music festival in Houston, Texas.

A sold-out headline show by rapper and festival organiser Travis Scott on turned deadly when guests began pushing towards the front of the stage, crushing some and reportedly leaving them unable to breathe.

Officials said a 14-year-old was among the victims, and that a security guard may have been injected with drugs as the chaos unfolded.

The mayor of Houston has vowed to “leave [no] stone unturned” in investigating the disaster, while Mr Scott said in a message to fans that he is “absolutely devastated.”

Livestreamed footage of the event showed the rapper pausing his performance as an ambulance arrived at the venue, NRG Park.

Follow latest updates below:

Key Points

• Eight people died in a mass casualty incident at Astroworld Music Festival
• Over 300 people were tried in a field hospital set up at the event
• 17 people are being treated in hospital with 11 suffering cardiac arrest
• Astroworld: 14-year-old youngest victim of deadly crowd surge at Travis Scott concert
• Security guard may have been injected with drugs

[8 November 2021 22:30 · Bevan Hurley]

Live Nation stock price falls 5 per cent as CEO says his ‘heart goes out’ to victims

Events giant Live Nation saw more than $1billion wiped off its stockmarket value on Monday after a deadly crowd surge at its Astroworld Festival resulted in eight deaths and hundreds of injuries.

Live Nation’s share price fell more than 5 per cent from its opening price of $123,79, to close on Monday at $117.14.

Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino issued a statement to say his “heart went out” to all of the victims, and that the company was fully cooperating with two law enforcement investigations.

“Many families are dealing with the unimaginable right now and my heart goes out to them and the entire Astroworld community,” Mr Rapino said.

“We are dedicated to doing everything we can to get the families and fans the answers and support they deserve.”

[8 November 2021 21:56 · Bevan Hurley]

Five festival-goers still fighting for their lives in ICU after Travis Scott concert

Five festival-goers are fighting for their lives in ICU and a sixth remains in hospital three days on from the deadly crush at Travis Scott’s Astroworld which left eight music fans dead.

Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña told CNN on Monday that six victims are still hospitalised, fuelling concerns that the death toll from Friday’ night’s tragedy may rise further.

The conditions, ages and identities of the people hospitalised was not revealed.

However, officials previously confirmed that 11 people went into cardiac arrest at the music festival at NRG Park in Houston, Texas.

Rachel Sharp has the full story...

[8 November 2021 21:32 · Bevan Hurley]

Medic says he found three unconscious people in 10 minutes at Astroworld

A man who says he worked as a medic at the Astroworld Festival on Friday has revealed how he found three unconscious people in just 10 minutes in the crowd at Travis Scott’s show.

In a three-part TikTok video posted under the account name @remi.rich, the man described how he and his coworkers were overwhelmed by the number of festival-goers in need of life-saving medical attention on Friday night.

He told how he was first called to the stage to find a girl who fellow festival-goers told him had been unconscious for 10 minutes and was lying in the crowd without receiving any medical aid.

The girl, whose identity is not known, didn’t have a pulse and wasn’t breathing when he found her, he said.

Rachel Sharp has the story...

[8 November 2021 21:12 · Bevan Hurley]

Astroworld victim had ‘life squeezed out of’ him and was ‘trampled on like a piece of trash,’ says family lawyer

Astroworld victim Alex Acosta had the “life squeezed out of” him and was “trampled on like a piece of trash” during Friday’s deadly crowd surge, a family attorney said Monday.

Mr Acosta is one of eight victims of a deadly crowd surge at the festival in Houston on Friday.

His family are amongst the more than dozen survivors and victims to have launched lawsuits against Travis Scott and Astroworld organisers Live Nation.

Read Andrew Buncombe’s latest as the Acosta family and their attorneys hold a press conference to discuss the tragedy, which claimed the lives of eight people and left hundreds injured.

[8 November 2021 20:59 · Bevan Hurley]

Travis Scott offers to pay funeral expenses for victims

Travis Scott will pay the funeral costs for the eight victims who died at Friday’s Astroworld Festival.

The “mass casualty incident” that occurred during Scott’s set also left hundreds injured. Those who died were between 14 and 27 years old.

Scott said on Monday he will pay the funeral expenses for those who died at the event in Houston, Texas and will also offer mental health support to those affected by the events.

Elizabeth Aubrey has the full story...

[8 November 2021 20:41 · Bevan Hurley]

Watch live as lawsuit filed against Travis Scott and Live Nation over Astroworld tragedy

A Texas law firm is holding a news conference on Monday afternoon to discuss a lawsuit being filed on behalf of Alex Acosta, who died at the Astroworld festival on Friday.

Mr Acosta and at least seven other people were killed following a crowd surge as rapper Travis Scott performed on stage.

Hundreds more were hurt at the music event, which is now under investigation by police.

The incident has left grieving families demanding answers, while one injured concertgoer has already sued Scott and surprise performer Drake, accusing them of inciting the crowd.

[8 November 2021 20:05 · Bevan Hurley]

Video resurfaces of Travis Scott encouraging fans to beat up man who tried to steal his shoe at concert

Video has emerged of rapper Travis Scott encouraging fans to attack a man who attempted to steal his shoe as he crowd-surfed at a concert in 2015.

The incident occurred at the Openair Festival in Switzerland as Scott jumped into the crowd as part of the performance.

A fan then tried to steal his expensive Yeezy sneakers, prompting him to pause midway through a song and climb on top of a security barrier to identify the perpetrator.

He shouted into the microphone: “Get that motherf****r, get him!”

Oliver O’Connell has the full details...

[8 November 2021 19:53 · Bevan Hurley]

Astroworld under fire as promotional video showing chaos at past gigs remains online after eight killed

Travis Scott and the organisers of Astroworld have come under fire after a promotional video showing chaos at the last festival has surfaced in the aftermath of Friday’s tragedy.

The video, which was posted on Astroworld Festival’s official Instagram account on 5 May to drum up interest in the 2021 event, features a montage of clips which appear to celebrate the rowdiness of the crowds at the 2019 festival which also left some fans in hospital.

Attendees are seen stampeding through the gates into the event, storming over the metal security barricades and pushing each other in a mosh pit.

The video has come to light as survivors and victims’ families demand answers over what led to Friday’s deadly incident.

Rachel Sharp has the full story...

[8 November 2021 19:40 · Bevan Hurley]

Travis Scott played on for almost 40 minutes after ‘mass casualty incident’ was declared at Astroworld

Travis Scott continued to perform for almost 40 minutes after a “mass casualty incident” had been declared at Astroworld Festival in Houston, Texas, on Friday, it has been revealed.

The rapper and organiser of the doomed event took to the stage for his performance at around 9pm on Friday night.

Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña said in a press conference on Saturday morning that officials declared a “mass casualty incident” at about 9.38pm and the promoter Live Nation agreed to shut the event down.

However, Mr Scott continued to perform for another 37 minutes until around 10.15pm, according to the Houston Chronicle.

The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story...

[8 November 2021 19:15 · Bevan Hurley]

Videos show Astroworld concertgoers climbing camera tower to beg for help

Concert-goers at the Astroworld Festival in Texas begged for the show to be stopped during Friday’s deadly crowd crush, it has emerged.

Videos circulating on TikTok and Twitter show a young woman and a young man climbing up a ladder to a camera platform and shouting at the operator to intervene, to no avail.

“There’s someone dead in there! There is someone dead!” the woman shouts. The operator seems to ignore them, alternating between shooing them away and focusing on his camera.

Other videos showed people in the crowd chanting “stop the show! Stop the show!” It is unclear when exactly these incidents happened.

The Independent’s Io Dodds has the full story...