Death Count grows as more Lawsuits filed
A ninth person died last week from injuries she sustained during Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival. Bharti Shahani, who was a senior at Texas A&M University, died five days after being hospitalized following last Saturday’s nightmarish concert. Bharti had attended the concert with her sister Namrata and a cousin, Mohit Bellani. They were all separated amid the tumult and shouting.
Police and fire department officials had previously reported that eight people had been killed and more than 300 sustained injuries after the crowd of thousands surged toward the fiery stage at NRG park in Houston.
Travis Scott faces rising criticism for not stopping his show sooner. He and the satanic show’s organizers have already been sued by several other concertgoers.
Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña
Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña, a 24-year veteran of the fire service, said Travis Scott and the festival organizers could have stepped in and halted the show. The chief said, “The one person who can really call for and got a tactical pause when something goes wrong is that performer. They have that bully pulpit and they have a responsibility.”
He told NBC’s Today on Nov. 9 that while an investigation is ongoing into the cause of the deadly crowd surge, he believes Mr. Scott could have “absolutely” played a role in stopping it.
A 56-page operations plan for Astroworld did not include a specific contingency for a crowd surge, despite the fact that three people were trampled and hospitalized at the same festival in 2019. According to news sources, it did state that in the event of such an incident, the only people with the authority to stop the concert were the executive director and festival director.
Rapper’s Attorney responds
The rapper’s attorney said in a statement: “It was reported that the operations plan designated that only the festival director and executive producers have authority to stop the show, neither of which (sic) is part of Travis’ crew.”
He called for investigations over “finger pointing.”
Lawsuits Filed
Attorneys filed lawsuits last week for more than 100 Astroworld concertgoers injured at Scott’s satanic Houston festival. An attorney for the plaintiffs described the victims as being injured “mentally, physically and psychologically.”
Several spoke at a press conference. One said: “I’ll never forget the look of terror on people’s faces.”
Bharti Shahani was planning to graduate from Texas A&M in the spring of 2022. All of those who died at the fiery show fraught with satanic symbology were between the ages of 14 and 27.
Travis Shaw Shows’ Prior Red Flags
Travis Shaw’s concerts were infamous for chaos even before the Astroworld tragedy. Mr. Scott was charged twice in the past for inciting incidents at his concerts. He pleaded guilty in 2015 and 2017 to charges that stemmed from directives he gave crowds at two separate shows.
In 2015, Jacques Berman Webster – Travis Scott’s real name – was sentenced to one year of court supervision after pleading guilty to reckless conduct charges for encouraging a crowd at Chicago’s Lollapalooza music festival to vault security barricades. Nobody was injured in that event; however at the 2019 Astroworld festival, three people were hurt and taken to hospital after getting trampled outside the show.
RELATED
- Astroworld Festival Lawsuits
- Eight killed at Astroworld Music Fest
- Concert goers: “It was demonic.”
by Matthews & Associates
