Texas Governor Greg Abbott and rapper Travis Scott have both released statements following the tragic events of last night at the Astroworld music festival in Houston that has left at least eight people dead so far.
According to AP, a "mass casualty incident" was declared just after 9:00 p.m. This followed a surge amongst the 50,000 in attendance crowds which resulted in at least eight deaths and multiple more injuries.
"What happened at Astroworld Festival last night was tragic, and our hearts are with those who lost their lives and those who were injured in the terrifying crowd surge," Abbott said. "Thank you to the first responders and good Samaritans who were on site and immediately tended to those who were injured in the crowd. The State of Texas is ready assist in the response, and I have directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to make state resources available to support the investigation. I ask Texans to join Cecilia and me in lifting up in prayer those affected by this tragedy."
In total, approximately 300 people were examined on-site and 23 were hospitalized - 11 of whom were in cardiac arrest, said AP.
Videos from before the festival show crowds of people barging their way through the entrance into the VIP area, trampling people along the way, and knocking down metal detectors.
The two-day music festival was founded by Scott in 2018. Saturday's events have since been canceled.
"I'm absolutely devastated by what took place last night," Scott said in a statement. "My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld festival." Scott went on to thank the Houston Police Department for their work stating they have his total support.
A statement was also released on the event's twitter page earlier today:
"Our hearts are with the Astroworld festival family tonight - especially those who we lost and their loved ones. We are focused on supporting local officials however we can. With that in mind the festival will no longer be held on Saturday. As authorities mentioned in their press conference earlier, they are looking into a series of cardiac arrests that took place. If you have any relevant information on this, please reach out to @HoustonPolice. Thank you to our partners at the Houston Police Department, Fire Department, and NRG Park for their response and support."
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