Officials confirmed that eight people, including a fourteen and sixteen year old, died and 25 others were hospitalized at the Astroworld music festival on Friday in Houston.

Seven of the victims ranged from 14 to 27 years old, Mayor Sylvester Turner said during a Saturday afternoon press conference. One victim’s age could not be determined.

Of the 25 people that were transported to the hospital, five were under the age of 18. Thirteen people are still hospitalized, the mayor added. No one is reported missing.

Crowds began to gather around 9 p.m. local time for a performance by rapper and festival founder Travis Scott. Concertgoers pushed toward the front of the stage prior to the start of the concert, leading to panic and some injuries. The mayhem escalated until 9:38 p.m. when a “mass casualty incident” was triggered, Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pe?a said early Saturday. The cause of death was not yet known for the eight victims.

Scott, who launched the festival in his hometown in 2018, said he was “absolutely devastated.”

“Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life,” he said in a tweet. “I am committed to working together with the Houston community to heal and support the families in need.”

Around 50,000 people were supposed to attend the festival, NBC News reported. The event was supposed to last through Saturday, but officials canceled the second day following the stampede.

Rumors also swirled on social media that unknown people were injecting other patrons with drugs, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said.

He added the agency has a report of one security officer who was reaching to grab a citizen and passed out after feeling a prick in his neck. Finner said the officer was revived with Narcan, a common drug used to treat narcotic overdoses in emergencies, and was later found to have a prick consistent as “if someone was trying to inject.”

The investigation into what happened at the event and led to the casualties is still ongoing.

“This incident is being thoroughly investigated and reviewed thoroughly. It is important for us to ascertain from last night what took place, what happened, where missteps may have occurred,” Mayor Turner said.

據當地媒體援引警方信息，美國德克薩斯州休斯頓的一個音樂節周五（11月5日）發生踩踏事故，至少8人死亡。

在該市NRG公園舉行的Astroworld音樂節上，一些觀眾涌向舞臺，發生嚴重的踩踏事故。

事故發生的經過

此次踩踏事故發生在當地時間周五晚上9點左右。

據官方信息，擁擠和踩踏導致一些人昏迷，造成更加嚴重的混亂。晚上9點38分，發生了大規模傷亡事件。

休斯頓消防局長佩納（Samuel Pena）說："我們今晚確認至少有8人死亡，還有幾十人受傷。"

佩納描述了說唱歌手斯科特（Travis Scott）在表演時，人群涌向舞臺壓縮的狀況。

佩納說，死亡原因尚有待法醫調查。

總共有17人被送往醫院，其中11人心臟驟停。

很多傷者也在現場接受了治療。現場設立了一個臨時救治點。

活動組織方事先已經安排現場醫療點。然而，混亂發生之后，這些醫療點 "很快就被淹沒了"，佩納說。

緊急服務機構在公園附近設立了一個臨時聚點，供親屬前往探訪。

現場視頻顯示，救護車在人群穿行。另有視頻顯示，醫護人員對傷者進行心肺復蘇，同時演出還在繼續。

目前尚不清楚導致這場事故的確切原因。

《休斯敦紀事報》報道說，斯科特在75分鐘的演出中多次暫停，因為他發現舞臺前面的歌迷遇到了麻煩。他要求保安確保歌迷平安并幫助他們離開現場。

Astroworld音樂節

Astroworld音樂節由美國說唱歌手斯科特創建，始于2018年。

這位29歲的說唱歌手與電視明星詹娜(Kylie Jenner)有一個孩子，曾在2013年取得事業的突破性進展，已多次獲得格萊美獎項及提名。

據《休斯頓紀事報》稱，共有5萬名觀眾參加了這兩天的活動。

踩踏事件發生的次日，音樂節活動宣布取消。