Things turned deadly this weekend at rapper Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival at NRG Park in Houston, when a stampede happened. According to CNN, things at the festival, which featured performances by multiple artists, started to get out of hand about an hour before Travis took the stage, as the large crowd pushed closer and closer to the stage.
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At this time, it is known that at least eight people—including two minors who were in attendance—were killed, with hundreds more being injured during the stampede, which occurred on Friday, November 5, 2021. Now, Travis and fellow rapper Drake are facing lawsuits in connection with the tragedy, with at least one concertgoer claiming the two rappers "incited the crowd." Keep reading to find out everything we know so far.
The crowd surged toward the stage when Travis Scott started performing.
One festival attendee talked to CNN and described the chaos leading up to and throughout Travis' performance. "The crowd became tighter and tighter, and at that point it was hard to breathe. When Travis came out performing his first song, I witnessed people passing out next to me," described TK Tellez.
Eight people have been reported dead.
According to NBC News, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has confirmed that at least eight people died at the festival, including a 14-year-old and a 16-year-old, and indicated that all of those who died were under the age of 30.
More than 300 people were treated for injuries.
NBC News also reports that more than 300 people were treated for injuries resulting from the stampede at an on-site field hospital at the festival, while at least two dozen were taken to area hospitals, 13 of whom remained in the hospitals as of Saturday night.
The crowd was reportedly out of control before the concerts even started.
Hours before Travis took the stage, video was captured of some of the 50,000 concertgoers entering the festival, running past security guards and cramming themselves through metal detectors. Today reports that at least three people were injured at that time as well.
Concertgoers' screams for help reportedly went unanswered.
A number or reports have indicated that people at the concert were screaming for help and one woman even made her way on stage to get the attention of a cameraman, and was seemingly ignored.
"We were all screaming for help, and no one helped or heard us. It was horrifying. People were screaming for their lives, and they couldn't get out. Nobody could move a muscle," TK explained.
A security guard was reportedly attacked.
According to the the New York Post, a preliminary investigation has revealed that a security guard who was walking among the crowd was stabbed in the neck with an opioid-filled needle. Medical staff on site treated him with Narcan, which is used to treat overdose patients.
Police are looking into whether the needle-wielding assailant may have caused the initial chaos at the concert, and have evidence that multiple other attendees were also treated with Narcan. "We do know that there were several, many, instances where they did administer Narcan on site,” Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said. “This is now a criminal investigation that is going to involve our homicide division, as well as narcotics."
Multiple attendees allegedly went into cardiac arrest.
Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pena has confirmed that 11 people who were treated at local hospitals were in cardiac arrest. Investigators are awaiting autopsy results for those who died.
One source believes it was a 'targeted attack.'
A source told the New York Post they believe people were being attacked by needles, and that a number of people who collapsed were in the same area of the crowd. "This was a targeted attack on innocent people, including a child,” the New York Post source suggested. “People were being spiked against their own will."
The situation grew incredibly dangerous.
"The crowd was moving so hard, people were falling over and then tripping over the people on the ground," a DJ named Billy Nasser who attended the festival, told the New York Post. Billy, who posted a video of a man getting chest compressions amid the crowd on his social media, also wrote on Instagram, "These festivals need to hire more on site paramedics there were dead bodies everywhere I didn’t know what to do."
There are now multiple lawsuits at play.
Both festival organizer Travis Scott and performer Drake are being sued for allegedly "inciting the crowd," at the festival. It has been noted that Travis did not end his performance even once it was evident that something was amiss.
Two lawsuits have been filed so far.
Attendee Manuel Souza filed a suit against Travis, as well as concert organizers ScoreMore and Live Nation on Saturday, and Austin resident and attendee Kristian Paredes filed a complaint on Sunday.
There are some claims that Travis has encouraged violence at his concerts before.
"This kind of behavior has long been encouraged by the festival’s founder and main performer,” claims Manuel Souza's lawsuit, reports Billboard. “His express encouragement of violence has previously resulted in serious violence at numerous past concerts.”
Travis is also now being accused of being a satanist.
In the aftermath of the Astroworld Festival, Travis is being accused by some of being a satanist. The conspiracy theories are suggesting that the concert itself was a "blood sacrifice" being made by Travis himself, with individuals claiming that's why he didn't stop the concert. But according to Newsweek, livestream footage refutes those claims since Travis can be seen stopping multiple times and calling for help.
Travis has issued a public statement.
On Saturday, Travis took to Twitter to offer a public statment, writing, "I'm absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival," and indicating that he is fully cooperating with the police investigation.
He is also issuing full refunds and has canceled upcoming performances.
Travis has announced that all attendess of the Astroworld Festival, which is actually a charity event that benefits his organization, the Cactus Jack Foundation, will receive full refunds. Travis has also canceled his upcoming performance at the Day N Vegas Festival.
