[ad_1]
Some Austin residents who attended the Astroworld Festival in Houston on Friday night said they never felt unsafe or endangered during Travis Scott’s concert, at which officials said a “flood” killed at least eight people and injured dozens felt.
Houston officials declared a “mass casualty incident” for a “mass casualty incident” at 9:38 pm on Friday during the festival at NRG Park, which was attended by an estimated 50,000 people, according to USA Today reports. The rest of the event was canceled.
The two-day music festival is directed by Scott, a Houston native and rapper. Officials said the audience surge began Friday after Scott took the stage.
What is Astro World ?:What we know about the “mass accident” at Travis Scotts Festival
Ryan Patton, 43, of Austin, who was attending the music festival with his 13-year-old son, said he was shocked to hear that people had died at the event. Patton said he didn’t make it all the way to the front of the stage, but his son made it.
“With the number of people there and all that excitement, the mosh pits, I could see that if you fell you would be in trouble,” Patton said. “But I never felt unsafe or in danger. We had a great time.”
Scott tweeted Saturday that he was “absolutely devastated” after learning of the deaths and injuries.
‘Speechless About Last Night’:SZA, Kid Cudi and more respond to the deadly onslaught of Astroworld
The victims who died were between 14 and 27 years old, USA Today reported.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said at a news conference Saturday that 25 people have been hospitalized and 13 are still being hospitalized. A 10-year-old is in critical condition, officials said. There were numerous other injuries. At least 11 suffered cardiac arrest.
Faraz Vohra, who owns Shawarma Point, an Austin food truck serving Mediterranean cuisine, and his team were the takeaway vendors during Friday’s music festival.
He was still in Houston on Saturday, waiting for investigators and law enforcement agencies to re-allow sellers access to the venue.
“We’re trying to figure out what to do with the thousands of dollars we just lost,” he said. “But of course that doesn’t matter. There have been lives that have been lost and it’s just sad.”
When Scott took the stage on Friday night, business was slow, so Vohra and his brother decided to go and see the show.
“But we stayed where we had room. We could see people struggling to get out of the crowd and sweat,” he said.
To beat the crowd, Vohra and his brother left the concert area before the show ended.
“Then we saw the police and the ambulances, we didn’t know what happened,” he said. “We didn’t realize the extent of what happened back then. We just thought people were dehydrated, passed out, and that’s what happens with a crowd like this.”
Shahram Ghassemi, 29, from Austin, attended the event on Friday and said it was not his first time at the Astroworld Festival. Ghassemi was also there in 2018 and 2019, he said.
“When Travis came out, I was expecting it to be crazy. It always works like that, ”he said. “But I’ve never felt insecure or claustrophobic. I was in the middle of the crowd.”
[ad_2]
https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/11/06/austin-residents-share-astroworld-2021-houston-experience-travis-scott-concert/6318278001/
