- According to the Astroworld website, at least 7 of the 10 Astroworld attendees that died were still standing in the same place. The Washington Post.
- The outlet conducted an investigation and found that the section of the south quadrant had been enclosed on three sides.
- Crowd experts stated that there was little movement around the quadrant due to the barricades.
An investigation by the BBC found that at least seven concertgoers who died from a crowd surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival earlier this year were standing in the exact same spot. The Washington Post.
The outlet reviewed several videos of the scene and spoke to witnesses and crowd experts to determine where many victims were when chaos broke out during Scott’s performance.
At the concert on November 5, ten people were killed and many more were injured. An investigation is underway into the incident and the causes of death are not yet known.
The investigation by the Post revealed that at least seven victims were seen standing in the same section. The area was enclosed on three sides with metal barriers. Scott took to the podium, creating a crisis centre in the pocket.
—The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 24, 2021
The Post found that this section was in the venue’s south quadrant. Many witnesses claimed that people collapsed as a result of pressure in the crowd.
According to the outlet, three of the concertgoers who died appear to be unconscious in a witness footage. A pile of fans had also fallen in the south quadrant. The newspaper reported that the video was taken just 16 minutes into a show that lasted almost an hour.
Just three minutes into Scott’s set, Scott discovered that parts of Scott’s compressed section only had 1.85 feet per person. A Carnegie Mellon University analysis of The Post revealed this, which would have presented an immediate risk to the crowd collapsing in.
The Post discovered that concertgoers started to crowd the main stage before the rapper began performing. When a separate performance was over, the pressure on the south quadrant increased.
—The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 24, 2021
According to crowd experts, the quadrant’s metal bars prevented movement and contributed to the problems of density. People who were already in the area lost their ability exit.
According to the Post’s review of the show, people started screaming only five minutes into it as attendees started fighting for space. Scott’s performance ended 16 minutes early, and it was nearly 50 minutes before the festival was declared a mass casualty. The newspaper stated that the performance lasted 72 minutes.
Insider reached out to Scott representatives but they did not respond immediately. Insider asked for comment from Scoremore, the organizer of the festival, and Live Nation, the company behind it.
The seven victims who The Post confirmed died in the south quadrant were Madison Dubiski, Axel Acosta, Ezra Blount, Jacob Jurinek, Franco Patino, Danish Baig, and Rodolfo Angel Peña.
Scott stated in a video that he had stopped the concert when he saw something wasn’t right.