Officials probe whether fentanyl played a role in Astroworld tragedy

November 9, 2021

Astroworld investigators are probing whether bad batch of illegal drugs laced with fentanyl played a role in deadly Travis Scott concert: Numerous concertgoers who survived were given naloxone which reverses opioid overdoses

Police are probing whether illegal drugs laced with fentanyl led to any of the eight deaths at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival on Friday in Houston
Multiple unconscious concertgoers were revived with the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, a source told the Wall Street Journal
Eight people between the ages of 14 and 24 died and hundreds more were injured after the crowd rushed the stage
A security guard trying to restrain someone was injected with opioids and passed out before he was revived with naloxone
Travis Scott continued to perform for 30 minutes as people were killed and crowds chanted ‘stop the show’
Lawsuits against the rapper and organizers continued piling up on Monday alleging ‘extreme distress’ caused to concertgoers
On Monday, friends and relatives of the victims spoke with anger about the 30-year-old’s lax security protocols

Investigators are looking into whether a bad batch of illegal drugs laced with fentanyl might have played a role in the deadly concert surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival, as it’s revealed that multiple unconscious concertgoers were revived with the overdose-reversing drug naloxone.

Eight people died, all between the ages of 14 and 24, and hundreds more were injured in the crowd on Friday in Houston, Texas, after a sizable group of the 50,000 in attendance pushed toward the stage at NRG Park as a timer clicked down to the start of the performance.

Police are still trying to determine whether any of the deaths occurred the surge or if other factors later came into play, such as accidental fatal overdoses, a source close to the investigation told the Wall Street Journal.

‘There are potential scenarios that are being looked into, including malicious attacks and laced pills,’ the source told the outlet, noting that authorities have launched a criminal homicide and narcotics investigation.

Police are probing whether illegal drugs laced with fentanyl led to any of the eight deaths at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival on Friday in Houston

Eight people died, all between the ages of 14 and 24, and hundreds more were injured in the crowd on Friday in Houston, Texas

Multiple unconscious concertgoers were revived with the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, a source told the Wall Street Journal

A security guard trying to restrain someone was injected with opioids and passed out before he was revived with naloxone. Pictured above, naloxone is a nasal spray that rapidly revives overdose victims

Dailymail.com reached out to the Houston police Department for comment but has not yet heard back.

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said during a press conference following the event that at least one person was involuntarily drugged. He explained that a security guard felt a prick in his neck and immediately fell unconscious while he was trying to restrain somebody else.

‘He was reaching over to restrain or grab a citizen and he felt a prick in his neck. He went unconscious, they administered Narcan. He was revived, and medical staff did notice a prick similar to a prick you would get if somebody was trying to inject,’ Finner said.

‘I think that all of us need to be respectful of the families and make sure we follow the facts and the evidence. And that’s what we’re trying to do here in the Houston Police Department. I will tell you one of the narratives was that someone was injecting other people with drugs.’

Finner referred to initial reports that a crazed man with a needle was injecting people in the crowd, directly leading to the stampede and deaths. But an off-duty nurse, who fainted and was crowd-surfed to the stage during the show, pushed back on such claims.

‘This is a lie. They trying to cover their asses. Nobody who actually was there has said this s**t. Nobody saw this s**t,’ Madeline Eskins wrote on social media.

Around 2pm hundreds of fans stormed the festival’s VIP entrance. About seven hours later the surge in front of the main stage killed eight people but the two events appear to be unrelated

One security guard hired to man the festival has since spoken out and said he dropped the gig because he felt ‘uncomfortable’ by the lack of preparation. Above is the job advertisement, which the source said required little experience

Meanwhile, one security guard hired to man the festival has since spoken out and said he dropped the gig because he felt ‘uncomfortable’ by the lack of preparation and ‘incompetence’ of the security company.

Darius Williams was one of the hundreds of people who were hired to work security for the festival by a company called Contemporary Services Corporation.

He told TMZ that he was hired just a few days before the event and that he only completed his training the day before. He and the others had to take a licensing exam for a level 2 security officer, but Williams said that the test was brief and the answers were fed to them sometimes aloud by the instructors themselves.

Williams walked out when he showed up for his first shift on Friday and saw that they were understaffed and ill-equipped to handle the massive crowd. He said that he expressed concerns to supervisors, to no avail.

Finner addressed reports that he had met with Scott and his head of security before the concert Friday to address his own concerns about public safety. The police chief said in a statement sent to the Wall Street Journal on Monday that ‘social tension’ and COVID-19 exacerbated his worries and that he asked Scott’s team to work with police.

In a video posted to Twitter an unconscious reveler was recorded being crowd-surfed towards security personnel who were seen carrying the young man’s body away

A harrowing video taken by a bystander in the crowd captured an officer performing CPR on a man in cardiac arrest

An ambulance was seen making its way through the crowd during the Astroworld music festival in Houston

Police chief Troy Finner (holding a press conference on Saturday), who knows Scott and felt that he had been trying to do good for his hometown, visited the musician in his trailer before the show on Friday. He told the megastar that he was concerned about ‘the energy in the crowd,’ a source told The New York Times

Fire Chief Samuel Peña (pictured at Saturday’s press conference) said that Scott and the organizers could have stepped in and paused the show. ‘The one person who can really call for and get a tactical pause when something goes wrong is that performer. They have that bully pulpit and they have a responsibility,’ Chief Peña said

‘The meeting was brief and respectful and a chance for me to share my public safety concerns,’ he added.

The show went on as planned, but was called off 30 minutes before schedule, but half an hour after a ‘mass casualty event’ had already been declared by the fire department.

Fire Chief Samuel Peña said Sunday that Scott and the organizers could have stepped in and paused the show.

‘The one person who can really call for and get a tactical pause when something goes wrong is that performer. They have that bully pulpit and they have a responsibility,’ Chief Peña told the NYT.

‘If somebody would have said, ‘Hey, shut this thing down and turn on the lights until this thing gets corrected’ — and that coming from the person with the mic — I think could have been very helpful.’

Friends and family of the eight young people who died and those of the hundreds who were injured are demanding that the rapper be held accountable for the tragedy.

Friends and family of the dead and injured are demanding that the rapper be held accountable for the tragedy. Edgar Acosta (pictured above), whose son Axel was killed on Friday, held a press conference on Monday in Houston with an attorney, Tony Buzbee

One woman, identified only as Rachel, was furious over the death of her friend Franco Patino, a 21-year-old from Illinois, studying at the University of Dayton in Ohio.

‘My friend is gone FOREVER because of Astroworld,’ she tweeted.

‘The anger I have over this is insane. Travis Scott is going to have to do a hell of a lot more than post a notes-app apology.’

A friend, going by the name Ana Lissa Marie, was distraught at the death of Jacob Jurinek, 21 – a childhood pal of Patino’s.

Jurinek was studying art and media at Southern Illinois University, and had traveled to Houston with Patino to celebrate Jurinek’s birthday.

‘I lost all my respect for Travis Scott,’ she tweeted.

‘What happened was absolutely disgusting. RIP to all the ones that lost their lives. To Jacob Jurinek, you will be missed kid. thank you for all the laughs.

‘My condolences go to all the families that lost lives.’

How deadly chaos at Travis Scott concert unfolded

At around 2.15pm, before the concert, video showed hundreds of people rushing through barriers at a VIP security checkpoint and barging past security.

At least one person was injured in that afternoon scrum.

Houston Fire Chief Sam Pena said that he wasn’t aware of what caused the rush but said that any special precautions for this year’s festival ‘weren’t enough.’

Police Chief Troy Finner visited rapper Travis Scott before his set to express ‘concerns about the energy in the crowd,’ according to the The New York Times.

Scott was due to perform at 9pm. A massive countdown timer came up 30 minutes before his set on a big screen.

ICU nurse Madeline Eskins said that the closer the timer got to zero, the worse the pressure within the crowd became.

‘People compressed up against each other and were pushing forward and backward,’ she told CNN.

Just after 9pm, Scott took to the stage to start his set which also included a surprise appearance by Drake.

By the time the rapper entered the stage people had already started to pass out.

At 9.30pm, officials received the first reports of injuries, Pena said.

At around 9.30pm, an ambulance made its way into the crowd, taking 10 minutes to reach the patient.

Video footage, which has since been deleted, shows two men who appear to be part of Scott’s entourage approach him on stage.

‘Y’all know what you came to do,’ Scott said, turning to the crowd, before the music started up again.

He then asked the tens of thousands in front of him to make ‘the ground shake.’

At 9.38pm, a ‘mass casualty event’ was declared, the fire chief said.

Scott maintains he was not aware of the severity of what was happening but he did stop the show on at least three occasions to ask that stricken people get help.

At around 10.10pm, the performance was finally halted.

Others have already begun legal action against Scott and the companies that arranged the festival.

Edgar Acosta on Monday held a press conference with Texas attorney Tony Buzbee to announce he was suing over the death of his 21-year-old son, Axel Acosta.

‘They need to make things change in these type of events,’ he said.

‘Today it was me.

‘I lost my son. It could’ve been you,’ Acosta said.

‘When you send your kid to have some fun, because somebody else is not providing the right… I don’t know I can explain. The right security.

‘Because it is not the first time that he has been in big events, right?

‘You can go to Disneyland and have fun. You can go to a baseball game and have fun. Because they have the right security, the right people, some people assisting those injured.

‘It’s hard to explain.’

He added: ‘He was a great kid, excellent student. He was trying to study and going to school to be an engineer or computer programmer.’

Buzbee said his firm is filing suit on behalf of 35 plaintiffs, including Acosta and possibly more.

‘Certainly neither Travis Scott nor his handlers, entourage, managers, agents, promoters, organizers, or sponsors cared enough about Axel to make even a minimal effort to keep him and the others at the concert safe,’ Buzbee said.

Buzbee pointed out lengthy list of past allegations and lawsuits against Live Nation, and detailed Scott’s criminal history, insisting that he had a reputation for holding unsafe shows.

The family of Rudy Peña, a 23-year-old medical assistant and criminal justice major from Laredo, have also hired legal representatives and intend to sue.

‘What happened this past weekend is a direct result of what happens when the pursuit of financial gain and fame take precedence over protecting the lives of the innocent,’ said Almaraz Law Firm, representing the Peñas, in a statement.

‘It is a testament to the current state of live events and the greed that runs rampant in this industry.

‘Nobody should feel unsafe enjoying something they love, and unfortunately this is exactly what has transpired.

‘We vow to work diligently and responsibly to bring justice to the Peña family and to all afflicted, and we will not rest until these voices have been heard loud and clear.

‘We will hold responsible parties accountable and fight to ensure that something positive comes of this unmitigated disaster. Something must change. Something will change.’

Other attendees and their lawyers, including high-profile civil rights lawyer Ben Crump – who is representing injured concertgoer Noah Gutierrez, 21 – said that the tragedy was ‘years in the making’ because of a history of injuries reported at Scott’s performances, including three hospitalizations at the same event in 2019.

The lawsuits also allege that Scott kept singing for more than 30 minutes despite numerous deaths, injuries and screams from fans for the show to stop.

‘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 to save them,’ Crump said in a statement.

More than 10,000 people have signed a petition attempting to block the rapper from performing as a headliners at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in California next April.

Crump set up a designated website for anyone else traumatized by the experience to reach out for legal assistance, which could be found at astroworldclaimshelp.com.

‘We will be pursuing justice for all our clients who were harmed in this tragic and preventable event,’ he added.

A number of injury lawyers, including famed civil rights attorney Ben Crump, are claiming that Scott, Live Nation and other parties behind the festival failed to provide the necessary security measures to prevent the stampede

Crump set up a designated website for anyone else traumatized by the experience to reach out for legal assistance

He shared another video of a woman climbing a stage ladder and screaming to a stage hand that people were dying in the crowd

Crump tweeted one TikTok video showing members of the crowd scream for the show to stop

Amid his lawsuits, the attorney tweeted one TikTok video showing members of the crowd scream for the show to stop and another of a woman climbing a stage ladder and screaming to a stage hand that people were dying in the crowd.

One tweet was captioned, ‘Crowd desperately chanting ‘stop the show’ and waving their hands in the air in an attempt to stop the Astroworld festival! If you know anyone who’s been affected by this horrifying event, reach out ASAP.’

And another read, ‘WOW. A young girl climbed a ladder to beg staff to stop the Astroworld fest & help attendees with what we now know were DOZENS of medical emergencies & deaths! Please reach out if you or a loved one has suffered from this devastating event!’

In addition to Crump’s lawsuit, which is just the latest in a slew of festival-related complaints, Scott is also facing disapproval from the public.

As of Monday night, more than 10,000 people had signed a Change.org petition aimed at blocking the rapper’s upcoming Coachella performance.

The petition – directed at Coachella organizers AEG, Paul Tollet and Goldenvoice – cites the Astroworld tragedy and Scott’s alleged negligence as reason to remove him from the concert line-up.

Nine-year-old boy who was sitting on his father’s shoulders at the Astroworld festival is in a medically induced coma after being injured in the fatal crowd surge

A nine-year-old boy who was dropped by his father as he held him above the crush of bodies at Friday’s deadly Astroworld Festival is in a medically induced coma with extensive damage to his lungs, heart and brain.

Ezra Blount was among the hundreds of concertgoers hospitalized during the stampede at the Travis Scott show.

The boy traveled from his mother’s home in Dallas to see one of his favorite artists with his dad, Treston. But the father-son outing quickly turned into a nightmare.

‘Due to his severe injuries which are swelling in the back of brain damage and trauma to nearly all organs we are certain that he was trampled and is still in induced coma,’ Treston Blount (left) wrote on a GoFundMe initiative for his son Ezra (right), which has raised nearly $7,000 in just 3 hours

Treston said he passed out while holding up Ezra so he wouldn’t be crushed. When he came to at the venue’s medical tent, his son had been admitted by himself to an area hospital as a John Doe.

‘Due to his severe injuries which are swelling in the back of brain damage and trauma to nearly all organs we are certain that he was trampled and is still in induced coma,’ Treston wrote on a GoFundMe initiative for his son, which has raised nearly $7,000 in just three hours.

‘With the recent tragic and unnecessary death at Travis Scott’s Astroworld concert, due to Scott’s own gross negligence and sheer lack of compassion for human life, we ask AEG, Paul Tollet, and Goldenvoice to remove his as performer at all of their festivals,’ the petition reads.

The petition also demands that Scott be removed from next weekend’s Day N Vegas Festival.

The festival organizers have not publicly responded to the petition.

On Monday night, as GoFundMe pages were springing up to support the families, the organizers of the website began directing well-wishers to the official pages.

Not all of the families have set up pages, but the site linked to three pages representing the families of Brianna Rodriguez, 16, plus the Acostas and Peñas.

Live Nation Entertainment Inc., which owns the event’s promoter, said Monday: ‘We continue to support and assist local authorities in their ongoing investigation so that both the fans who attended and their families can get the answers they want and deserve, and we will address all legal matters at the appropriate time.’

Scoremore Shows, the concert’s promoter, in a statement Monday on behalf of itself, Live Nation and the festival team, said its staff had met with investigators, provided all footage from their CCTV cameras, and paused all takedown of equipment to keep the site intact.

Scott, 30, born in Houston, founded his festival in 2018 on the heels of his chart-topping album Astroworld. He has since said he will cover the funeral expenses for the eight victims and tickets will also be refunded.

‘Travis remains in active conversations with the city of Houston, law enforcement and local first responders to respectfully and appropriately connect with the individuals and families of those involved,’ his team said in a statement.

‘These are the first of many steps Travis plans on taking as a part of his personal vow to assist those affected throughout their grieving and recovery process.’

He was set to perform at another festival this Saturday, but sources told Variety that he will no longer appear because he is ‘too distraught to play.’

The rapper had a headline appearance scheduled for the Day N Vegas Festival at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds, a general-admission event featuring several artists where fans rush to the front of the stage on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Scott was scheduled for the main stage, called the Frank Stage, from 10.45 p.m. to 11.45 p.m., following performances from Lil Baby and Doja Cat.

Drake, who was invited on stage by Scott, on Monday night spoke of his sorrow.

‘I’ve spent the past few days trying to wrap my mind around this devastating tragedy,’ he wrote on Instagram.

‘I hate resorting to this platform to express an emotion as delicate as grief but this is where I find myself.

‘My heart is broken for the families and friends of those who lost their lives and for anyone who is suffering.’

He said he would pray for them, and was committed to ‘be of service in any way I can.’

Kylie Jenner, Scott’s girlfriend, attended the festival and said in a statement she and Scott did not know what was happening in the crowd during the performance. She came under fire on Friday night when she posted footage which clearly showed a team of paramedics trying to push their way through the crowd.

Thousands of people have signed a Change.org petition aimed at blocking the rapper’s upcoming festival performances

Scott, 30, who shares a daughter with Kim’s sister Kylie Jenner, 24, is being sued along with Drake for ‘inciting mayhem’ at the event in Houston that saw a 14-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl killed

Also last night, Kendall Jenner, 26, Kim’s supermodel sister shared her own condolences, saying: ‘I’m still at a loss for words over the news from Astroworld. I’m truly broken for the families that have lost loved ones and my prayers go out to everyone involved’

Kylie said in a statement: ‘Travis and I are broken and devastated. My thoughts and prayers are with all who lost their lives, were injured or affected in anyway by yesterday’s events.

‘I want to make it clear we weren’t aware of any fatalities until the news came out after the show and in no world would have continued filming or performing.

‘I am sending my deepest condolences to all the families during this difficult time and will be praying for the healing of everyone who has been impacted.’

Her sister Khloe sparked a backlash on Saturday when she posted ‘thirst trap’ photos on Instagram of her showing off her curves in a sheer body suit.

The Kardashians are under intense scrutiny along with Scott because he and Kylie have been item for more than four years.

The pair share a daughter Stormi together and Kylie, a self-made lipstick entrepreneur, is pregnant with their second child.

Kim Kardashian has come out in support of Travis Scott , saying that the rapper ‘cares so much for his fans’ after eight people were killed in a crush at his Astroworld Festival.

‘Absolutely heartbroken for the lives who were lost and anyone who was hurt at Astroworld. Just like all of you, our family is in shock by the tragedy,’ Kim tweeted.

‘We are keeping all of the victims, families and loved ones impacted in our prayers for healing – as well as Travis who we know cares so much about his fans and is truly devastated.’

‘Sending everyone who has been affected all of my love and wishing them strength during this incredibly devastating and sensitive time.’

VICTIMS OF TRAVIS SCOTT’S ASTROWORLD FESTIVAL

Eight people died on Friday at Travis Scott’s music festival in Houston, Texas, with the victims ranging in age from 14 to 27.

John Hilgert, 14

John Hilgert, of Hunters Creek Village, was identified as one of the concert fatalities on Saturday by officials at Memorial High School, where he was a freshman student.

Hilgert attended Friday’s concert with his long-time friend Robby Hendrix, 15.

Henrdix’s mother, Tracy Faulkner, bought her son’s ticket for his birthday and ‘ultimately regrets the decision’.

‘Everything about that night was a tragedy,’ Faulkner told the Houston Chronicle. ‘They were both in the same place at the same time and one came home and one we will never see.’

She said Hilgret and Hendrix had known each other for years and played football together.

‘John was a good student and athlete and so polite. He was the sweetest and smartest young man,’ she shared.

Brianna Rodriguez, 16

Brianna Rodriguez was a dancer and junior in high school. On Saturday her family confirmed that she was one of the eight victims who died.

A GoFundMe account set up by her family described her as a ‘beautiful vibrant 16-year-old’.

‘Dancing was her passion and now she’s dancing her way to heaven’s pearly gates.’

Jacob Jurinek, 20

Jacob Jurinek attended the concert with his best friend Franco Patino when both were trampled to death. The pair grew up in the same Illinois town of Naperville.

A friend, going by the name Ana Lissa Marie, was distraught at the death of Jurinek, who was studying art and media at Southern Illinois University, and had traveled to Houston with Patino to celebrate Jurinek’s birthday.

‘I lost all my respect for Travis Scott,’ she tweeted.

‘What happened was absolutely disgusting. RIP to all the ones that lost their lives. To Jacob Jurinek, you will be missed kid. thank you for all the laughs.

‘My condolences go to all the families that lost lives.’

Other victims included University of Dayton student Franco Patino (right), 21, who was attending the event with his best friend, 20-year-old Jacob Jurinek, when both were trampled to death

Franco Patino, 21

The University of Dayton confirmed to DailyMail.com that student Franco Patino of Naperville, Illinois, attended the concert in Houston on Friday.

The mechanical engineering technology major was involved in several campus extracurriculars and had most recently been working in a co-op program in Mason, Ohio.

University president Eric F Spina extended his sympathy and prayers to Patino’s loved ones and the campus community.

Patino’s fraternity, Alpha Psi Lambda, also issued condolences to his friends and family.

‘It is with a very heavy heart, Alpha Psi Lambda National, Inc shares that our brother, Franco “Cuauhocelotl” Patino, has passed on to Omega Chapter,’ the organization wrote on Facebook.

‘We extend our condolences to his family, friends, Alpha Nu Chapter and all that share in this loss. May his memory be eternal.’

The college senior joined the fraternity’s University of Dayton chapter last year.

Patino (left) and Jurinek grew up in the same Illinois town and were best friends

Axel Acosta, 21

Edgar Acosta on Monday held a press conference with Texas attorney Tony Buzbee to announce he was suing over the death of his son Axel Acosta, who had traveled from Washington to attend the festival – his first concert.

Axel Acosta, 21

‘They need to make things change in these type of events,’ he said.

‘Today it was me. I lost my son. It could’ve been you,’ Acosta said.

‘When you send your kid to have some fun, because somebody else is not providing the right… I don’t know I can explain. The right security.

‘Because it is not the first time that he has been in big events, right?

‘You can go to Disneyland and have fun. You can go to a baseball game and have fun. Because they have the right security, the right people, some people assisting those injured.

‘It’s hard to explain.’

Rodolfo ‘Rudy’ Peña, 23

Peña, from Laredo, Texas, died of cardiac arrest after being injured at the show.

He was a medical assistant and criminal justice major with aspirations to become a model and dreamed of one day being a US Border Patrol agent.

‘It is a testament to the current state of live events and the greed that runs rampant in this industry.

‘Nobody should feel unsafe enjoying something they love, and unfortunately this is exactly what has transpired.

‘We vow to work diligently and responsibly to bring justice to the Peña family and to all afflicted, and we will not rest until these voices have been heard loud and clear.

‘We will hold responsible parties accountable and fight to ensure that something positive comes of this unmitigated disaster. Something must change. Something will change.’

Rodolfo ‘Rudy’ Peña, 23

Madison Dubiski, 23

Madison Dubiski of Cypress, Texas, was the eighth and final victim to be identified on Monday.

The former Ole Miss student was yanked from her brother Ty, who tried to pull her to safety, in the surge and disappeared in the crowd.

Dubiski studied at the University of Mississippi between 2016 and 2017 and worked in advertising and marketing. She went to Cy-Fair High School, where she was a Varsity cheerleader and member of National Charity League, a community service organization for mothers and their daughters in middle and high school.

Friends said that her mother Michelle was her best friend and that she was very close with Ty, who graduated from Cy-Fair in 2019.

Madison Dubiski, 23

Danish Baig, 27

Basil Mirza Baig took to Facebook Saturday announcing that his brother, Danish Baig also died at Astroworld.

‘My brother was killed in this horrendous event that was managed poorly and supervised by such horrible people,’ Baig wrote.

‘People were trampled, walked and stomped on. My brother tried to save my sister-in-law from these horrendous acts that were being done to her in the process he lost his life.’

Baig described Danish as a beautiful soul who put everyone before himself.

‘Last night he showed his courageous act to save my sister-in-law from those horrendous things that were being done. I am lost of words and in true trauma from this event,’ he added.

‘I was there and I wasn’t able to save my brother. People were hitting pushing and shoving and did not care for anyone’s life.’

Baig also accused the rapper of provoking the chaos by ‘calling people to the stage to jump into the crowd’ and for ‘not stopping the show’.

‘This is not the end,’ Baig warned. ‘My family and I will go to the full extent to make sure he is brought to justice.’

Danish Baig, 27

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