8 people have died and hundreds injured following a crowd surge at the Astroworld Festival in Texas fronted by Travis Scott.
50,000 people attended the event and according to Texas officials, of the injured, 11 people were taken to hospital with cardiac arrest.
Local news outlet the Houston Chronicle reports that Travis Scott stopped his set several times as he noticed fans in distress and called for help from security.
Footage posted to social media from earlier in the day appear to show crowds pushing through security in order to get into the event.
Fire chief Samuel Pena said, “The crowd began to compress towards the front of the stage, and that caused some panic, and it started causing some injuries, people began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic”.
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said, “I think it’s very important that none of us speculate. Nobody has all the answers tonight.
“We’re going to do an investigation and find out because it’s not fair to the producers, to anybody else involved, until we determine what happened, what caused the surge. We don’t know, but we will find out.”
The second day of the festival has been cancelled and the police have set up a reunification centre at the Wyndham Houston Hotel for anyone who is worried about a loved one.
(Image Credit: Shutterstock – zef art)