Live Nation and artist Travis Scott (pictured) have been hit with multiple lawsuits following the death of eight people at Scott’s Astroworld festival.
On Friday, eight attendees were fatally crushed while hundreds were left with injuries during the rapper’s headline performance at the festival, held at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
At a press conference at the weekend, Mayor of Houston Sylvester Turner confirmed the ages of those that had died were 14, 16, 21, 23 and 27.
Astroworld organisers Live Nation released a statement on Twitter which said: “Heartbroken for those lost and impacted at Astroworld last night.
“We will continue working to provide as much information and assistance as possible to the local authorities as they investigate the situation.”
According to Billboard, an attendee at the festival Manuel Souza has filed a petition in Harris County District Court against Scott, festival organisers Live Nation and ScoreMore, and Scott’s record company Cactus Jack.
The report suggested the lawsuit accused the defendants of negligence and gross negligence. The lawsuit said the incident was a result of “a motivation for profit at the expense of concertgoers’ health and safety” according to Souza’s attorney Steve Kherkher.
A further lawsuit has been filed by Texas attorney Thomas J. Henry on behalf of another Astroworld attendee, who remains unnamed. Scott, Live Nation and NRG Stadium are listed as co-defendants. Canadian artist Drake is also listed as he made an appearance at the festival, in the performance which led to the crowd surge.
In a press release from the office of Henry, it is alleged that Scott and Drake continued to perform even while emergency vehicles arrived and first responders attempted to rescue those that were injured and in distress.
The release stated: “By the time Live Nation finally decided to end the performance, 23 people required hospitalisation, 11 were in cardiac arrest, and more than 300 had to be treated at a ‘field hospital’ on site. So far, eight people have died of their injuries.”
Henry said: “Live musical performances are meant to inspire catharsis, not tragedy. Many of these concert-goers were looking forward to this event for months, and they deserved a safe environment in which to have fun and enjoy the evening. Instead, their night was one of fear, injury and death.
“There is every indication that the performers, organisers, and venue were not only aware of the hectic crowd but also that injuries and potential deaths may have occurred. Still, they decided to put profits over their attendees and allowed the deadly show to go on.”
A third lawsuit has been filed by civil rights and personal injury attorney Ben Crump, on behalf of Noah Gutierrez, another attendee at Astroworld.
In a statement, Crump said: “We are hearing horrific accounts of the terror and helplessness people experienced – the horror of a crushing crowd and the awful trauma of watching people die while trying unsuccessfully to save them.”
Image: Frank Schwichtenberg/(CC BY-SA 4.0)/Edited for size