9-Year-Old Trampled at Astroworld Festival Fighting for His Life
The investigation is still ongoing into what sparked the tragedy at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival Friday, where eight people died in what authorities are calling a "mass casualty incident." It seems with each passing day, however, the repercussions continue to grow from Scott's annual hometown concert.
Hours after Harris County authorities officially released the names of the eight victims, ranging in age from 14-27, it was revealed that a 9-year-old boy was fighting for his life after attending the event with his father.
According to reporting from Houston's ABC13 the victim's grandfather, Ezra Blount was on his father’s shoulders watching the concert when the two got trapped in the crowd surge. Ezra’s father collapsed, and both were trampled when the crowd surged toward the main stage.Harris County has released the names of the 8 AstroWorld victims:
— Lina Hidalgo (@LinaHidalgoTX) November 8, 2021
Mirza Baig, 27, HOU.
Rodolfo Peña, 23, Laredo
Madison Dubiski, 23, Cypress
Franco Patiño, 21, Illinois
Jacob Jurinke, 20, Illinois
John Hilgert, 14, HOU
Axel Acosta Avila, 21, Washington
Brianna Rodriguez, 16, HOU
Stefania Okolie, who broke the story for ABC13, reported that the boy was initially taken to the hospital as a John Doe separate from his father. By the time family members were able to locate him they were faced with the fact the young child was in a coma after suffering major organ damage and is in a "weakened state" with swelling of the brain.
"How could this happen in the city of Houston?" Ezra's grandfather told Okolie. "You know, when we go to concerts and different events we expect safety and security."
It was just the latest bit of bad news for Scott, a Houston native who has tied the concert to various charitable ventures since he launched it in 2018. The singer said he was "devastated" by what happened. He issued an apology on social media, vowing to work with authorities to get to the bottom of what happened, in addition to offering to pay the funeral costs for the deceased.
"I'm honestly just devastated and I could never imagine anything like this happening. I'm going to do everything I can to keep you guys updated and keep you guys informed of what's going on. Love you all," the "Sicko Mode" artist said in an Instagram clip the day following the disaster. He is already facing several lawsuits along with the company behind the production, Live Nation, as well as his special guest for the event, rap superstar Drake.
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