Travis Scott releases new statement on Astroworld Festival tragedy

12 November 2021, 12:36 | Updated: 12 November 2021, 13:38

Travis Scott makes statement after tragic deaths at Astroworld Festival

Issuing in a new statement, Travis and his team are now asking the victims' families from the Astroworld incident to get in contact with him to offer personal support

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Trigger warning: This article contains sensitive material surrounding injury and death

Travis Scott and his team have issued a new statement surrounding the tragic incident at Astroworld last Friday that saw eight people dead and over 300 injured.

This comes after the death toll has now risen to nine after 22-year-old Bharti Shahani has passed away after being declared brain dead yesterday from the stampede.

Her family confirmed in a press conference last night she died on Wednesday night to her injuries at the festival.

Astroworld death toll rises to nine as 22-year-old Bharti Shahani dies

Travis Scott headlining Astroworld Festival 2021
Travis Scott headlining Astroworld Festival 2021. Picture: Getty

"Over the last week, Travis Scott and his team have been actively exploring routes of connection with each and every family affected by the tragedy through the appropriate liaisons" the statement reads.

"He is distraught by the situation and desperately wishes to share his condolences and provide aid to them as soon as possible, but wants to remain respectful of each family’s wishes on how they’d best like to be connected".

"To those families who would like to reach out directly to his team, please send an email to the below address where we will have a team on hand to assist [AW21information@gmail.com]".

Travis Scott headlining Astroworld Festival 2021
Travis Scott headlining Astroworld Festival 2021. Picture: Getty

This second comes after Travis' attorney Edwin F. McPherson issued a statement earlier this week, discussing the incident and the finger-pointing surrounding the deaths of eight people.

"There has been multiple finger-pointing, much of which has been by city officials, who have sent inconsistent messages and have backtracked from original statements" he says.

Astroworld Festival 2021
Astroworld Festival 2021. Picture: Getty

More than 50,000 people attended the sold-out festival were reports of thousands of people without tickets jumping fences and turn styles and avoiding metal detectors.

This resulted in audiences compressing towards the front of the stage, causing shortness of breath, cardiac arrest and several injuries.

A statement from one of the attendees states "the crowd begun to surge towards the front of the stage when Drake came on stage, leading to instant chaos".

Both Travis Scott and Drake have released statements speaking on the tragedy at Astroworld Festival.

Posting a emotional video on Saturday night addressing the tragedy, the lives lost at the festivals and criticism that he refused to stop the show Travis said:

"Anytime I could make out, you know, anything that’s going on, you know, I stop the show and, you know, help them get the help they need".

He added that 'he’s working with authorities to try to get to the bottom of this' stating “I’m honestly just devastated, and I could never imagine anything like this happening. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival".

Drake took to Instagram to share his first statement saying: "I’ve spent the past few days trying to wrap my mind around this devastating tragedy".

He continues: "I hate resorting to this platform to express an emotion as delicate as grief but this is where I find myself. My heart is broken for the families and friends of those who lost their lives and for anyone who is suffering".

"I will continue to pray for all of them, and will be of service in any way I can, May God be with you all".

Travis has since commented that all tickets from Astroworld 2021 will be refunded and his plans to cover funeral costs for those who died at the festival.

Travis Scott, Astroworld organizer ScoreMore, Live Nation and Drake have all been named in several lawsuits following the tragic incident on Friday at Astroworld Festival. On Wednesday, it was confirmed that 9-year-old attendee Ezra Blount has been left in a medically induced coma.

Ezra Blount was reported trampled by the crowd, sustaining life threatening injuries that has now left him in a medically induced coma.

His attorney Ben Crump, who is also aiding other Astroworld Victims confirmed on Tuesday that Ezra is currently in hospital following the stampede during Travis' set. Filing a lawsuit against the Highest In The Room rapper, the 9-year-old remains on life support after suffering severe damage to his liver, kidney and brain.

In a tweet posted yesterday afternoon, the legal team state:"Ezra Blount sustained life-threatening injuries and is currently hospitalized, in a medically-induced coma.

The suffering that this family is going through is immeasurable. This little boy had his whole life ahead of him – a life that is currently hanging in the balance because of the reckless mismanagement that ensued at the Astroworld Festival".

Houston Authorities Continue Investigation Into Trampling Deaths At Astroworld Concert
Houston Authorities Continue Investigation Into Trampling Deaths At Astroworld Concert. Picture: Getty

It's also claimed by the legal team that the injuries will impair his quality of life forever and his abilities to grow and thrive.

Placing the accident and the child's injuries solely on Travis Scott, Live Nation and others, they are claiming that "Travis and his team egregiously failed in their duty to protect the health, safety and lives of all concertgoers".

"We ask everyone to send up the most powerful prayers they can as this family tries to grapple with the undoable damage that has been done to their son. We demand justice for Ezra Blount, his family, and all of our clients that left Astroworld with trauma".

There are now reportedly 49 lawsuits pending.

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