Declared a “mass casualty incident” by officials, the Astroworld concert on November 5 turned deadly when a powerful crowd surge swept through the venue, Houston’s NRG Park.
The fifty thousand people in attendance pushed towards the stage, creating crushing pressure that made it difficult for fans to breathe. Some fans passed out from lack of oxygen and fell to the bottom of huge piles of people. At least ten people did not make it out alive and hundreds more were injured.
The concert-goers went to social media during and after the event to share their stories. Videos of screams for help and images of unconscious people spread all over the internet as the world tried to figure out what had happened. Many others wrote or filmed themselves recounting the experience. “It felt like we was in a concert in hell,” said Astroworld attendee Nuk Santiago on Instagram. “You couldn’t breathe, you couldn’t see.”
Travis Scott fans are torn on who is to blame for the incident.

Freshman Danny Lydon said, “Even if he did know, what was he supposed to do?” Sophomore Rachel Reubi emphasized this point by saying, “If I was him, I wouldn’t know what to do either.”
Freshman Kylie Dutkovich has a different opinion and said, “This could have been prevented if he was more aware of what was going on in the crowd.”
Many of the students who believe Travis Scott did nothing wrong think the blame should fall on the event organizers. “It’s management’s fault. They picked the location and should’ve known that place couldn’t hold that many people,” said Rachel Reubi. “He could have handled the situation better, but it wasn’t his fault.”
Many fans agreed, however, that Scott should wait before resuming live performances out of respect for the tragedy. Freshman Chase Timmerson said, “like two years. It gives people enough time to forget, and he could reflect.”
One of the people that lost their life at this concert was a freshman in high school, the same as half of the students at NAI. Another Travis Scott fan, freshman Kyra Malhotra, said, “It’s shocking to think of someone our age going to a concert and just not making it out alive.”
While Travis Scott has issued an apology and said he will cover the victims families’ funeral expenses, it isn’t the end of the controversy. People on the internet have pointed out instances where artists have stopped their concerts to make sure fans were okay and were getting help if injured.
The issues this tragedy has created have not yet been resolved. According to the New York Post on November 18th, Travis Scott and others face a two billion dollar Astroworld lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of almost three hundred victims, hopes to provide justice for the multitude of physical and emotional injuries caused by the concert.