Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival turns deadly 32 minutes into set

USD students weigh in on the tragedy that left eight dead and hundreds injured

TAYLOR DEGUZMAN / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / THE USD VISTA

It took eight fatalities and several concert-goers in critical condition – officials naming the event a “mass casualty event” – for the world to recognize that violent moshing and raging, especially encouraging such behavior, should not be the norm. 

The lyrics in Travis Scott’s 2018 song, “STARGAZING”, set an eerie precedent for the Nov. 5 concert: “…it ain’t a mosh pit if (there) ain’t no injuries.”

No matter where one turns, no matter where one scrolls on social media, it is hard to escape the horrific cries for help, the graphic footage of concert-goers being trampled and resuscitated, and the traumatic retellings of all that took place at rapper Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival at NRG Park. 

After what occurred during Friday night’s concert in Scott’s hometown, Houston, Texas, the second day of the festival was immediately canceled. 

The eight victims who were left vulnerable to the uncontainable crowd surge were publicly identified on Monday by Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo. The victims’ ages ranged from 14 to 27 years old. The youngest of the victims was John Hilgert, 14, a ninth-grade student from Houston. 

An NBC news article described how the crowd surge, specifically when the crowd began rushing to the stage altogether, left many in critical condition. 

Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña, during a press conference, explained that the crowd surge “…caused some panic, and it started causing some injuries. People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic.” Concert-goers became suffocated and trampled, hospitalizing even a 9 year old boy, who is now in a coma.  

In a tweet on Sunday, the Houston Police Department (HPD) wrote that the investigation regarding the tragedy is active and “in its early stages.” While awaiting answers for what officially caused the mass casualty event, many question the timeline of the concert and any warning signs that showed how the situation could have been mitigated. 

The Timeline of the Tragedy

Houston Police Department Chief Troy Finner met with Scott and his head of security on Friday, ahead of the event, because of the concerns he had for public safety. A statement from Chief Finner explained the details of the meeting. 

“I met with Travis Scott and his head of security for a few moments last Friday prior to the main event. I expressed my concerns regarding public safety and that in my 31 years of law enforcement experience I have never seen a time with more challenges facing citizens of all ages to include a global pandemic and social tension throughout the nation,” Finner said. 

The Houston Chronicle broke down the timeline of events that occurred, focusing on the slim window from when first responders became aware of the incident and reported it, and when Scott’s set ended. 

The article noted that police and firefighters declared a “mass casualty” event at 9:38 p.m., 32 minutes into Scott’s set, when crowd surges reportedly began. What’s most notable is that the Chronicle reported that police stated the event’s promoter, Live Nation, agreed to cut the show short at 9:38 p.m.; however, Scott continued to perform his entire set, ending around 10:15 p.m. – nearly 40 minutes after the event was declared a mass casualty event. 

There are several videos showing concert-goers yelling for help, urging cameramen and staff to stop the show. Many criticize Scott and his team for not stopping the show sooner, however HPD Chief Finner “defended letting the show play out, saying that an abrupt halt could have caused a riot” noting that the festival was not undermanned – there were 528 police officers and Live Nation employed 755 private security personnel according to the Wall Street Journal – to handle a crowd of 50,000 under normal circumstances. 

Though it is reported that there were 50,000 in attendance, a Variety eyewitness and Channel ABC13 said that a stampede of hundreds of people burst through gates at NRG Park right at 2 p.m. before the concert on Friday to bypass the checkpoint, in order to gain entry to the event without tickets. Here, people were trampled and even detained – the chaos was seen as precedence to what would ensue later. 

USD students reacted to the Astroworld Festival tragedy and spoke on behalf of past experiences with jam-packed festivals and concerts. 

Natalie Wright, USD sophomore, considers herself an avid concert-goer – attending four concerts in the past two months, as well as attending Coachella ever since she was 10 years old. Wright explained that though tragic, she wasn’t surprised by what occurred on Friday, and believes that the concert organizer should be held responsible. 

“I wasn’t shocked because I know how violent concert culture with rap artists can be. I think Live Nation should take accountability for what happened,” Wright said. “Having seen Travis (Scott) perform before, I’ve seen his mentality of wanting people to mosh, as well as seeing the violence he pushes for. If there’s no sense of reform that will prevent such violent moshing and raging culture, I could see this happening again.” 

Compared to indie and pop artists, crowds aren’t as rowdy or out of hand as the kinds of crowds that attend rap and hip hop artists’ concerts or sets. Wright shared her experience seeing other big, headlining rap artists at past festivals. 

“I’ve seen both Kendrick Lamar and Sheck Wes in concert, and the crowds have always been crazier. I’ve been stuffed in huge mosh pits, where my friend and I would come out with bruises,” Wright said. “I feel like for most rap artists, they try to get the crowd aroused because seeing them mosh and seeing the crowd super excited is almost like validation.” 

Camille Abaya, USD senior, wasn’t at all surprised on Friday. She explained that Travis Scott was always an artist she knew she would never want to see. 

“I would never ever go to a Travis Scott concert because of all the injuries that people withstand coming out of mosh pits such as broken ribs, broken arms, and broken legs,” Abaya said. 

When Abaya first found out about the fatalities and tragic events at the Astroworld Festival, she immediately recalled a similar, traumatic series of events that happened to her when she saw rapper ASAP Rocky at the music festival Camp Flog Gnaw. 

In November 2018, Abaya and a group of friends attended the festival, and waited at one of the stages for ASAP Rocky to come on next. She was separated from her whole group, until it was just her and her friend. They were stuck near the stage when ASAP Rocky was about to come on. 

“The crowd was so insane that my feet weren’t touching the ground; I was being moved left and right beyond my control,” Abaya explained. “The scariest part was once ASAP came on, I started seeing all the way from the barricade, bodies falling dominoes on top of each other, and I began bracing myself because I knew I was next.” 

Abaya graphically described what was going through her mind as she became suffocated by other bodies. 

“I honestly thought I was going to die. People were on top of each other, scratching and elbowing. Everyone just wanted to see ASAP and everyone just wanted to survive,” Abaya said. “I was on the ground laying on someone’s chest while 10 other people were on top of me. I couldn’t breathe.” 

Luckily, a group of guys Abaya and her friend befriended saw them struggling and helped pick them up from the ground. As soon as they got up, Abaya and her friend ran to the farthest place they could to get breathing room. 

As an avid concert-goer, despite her traumatic experience at Camp Flog Gnaw, and now being aware of the tragic events in Houston, Abaya still plans on attending music festivals and seeing artists that elicit rowdy crowds. 

“If anything, these events make me feel like I need to be more cautious. It’s disappointing that something as tragic as what happened in Houston had to happen for us to realize that concerts can be very dangerous,” Abaya said. “I will personally not go into any pits that I don’t feel like I’m capable of getting out of by myself.” 

Since Friday’s events, Scott has agreed to refund all Astroworld attendees, as well as pay for funerals for those who passed. 

Scott was scheduled to perform at this weekend’s Nov.  12 through Nov. 14 Day N Vegas festival, but pulled out after the Astroworld incident. Day N Vegas announced that artist Post Malone will be headlining the second day of the three day festival in place of Travis Scott.