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Police met with Travis Scott before the deadly Astroworld concert. Here’s why

Police were worried about crowd control before a concert where crowd control led to death

SHARE Police met with Travis Scott before the deadly Astroworld concert. Here’s why
Emergency personnel respond to the Astroworld music festival.

Emergency personnel respond to the Astroworld music festival in Houston on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021. Several people died and numerous others were injured in what officials described as a surge of the crowd at the music festival while Travis Scott was performing.

KTRK via Associated Press

Houston’s police chief met with Travis Scott and his team before the Astroworld concert show, which turned deadly over the weekend, The New York Times reports.

An unnamed source told The New York Times that Houston police chief Troy Finner was worried about the crowd size for Scott’s show, and he was concerned how the crowd would act. So he spoke with rapper Travis Scott about the crowd in his trailer before the show.

  • Concert staff and Houston anticipated a larger crowd due to the excitement caused by the pandemic. So they hired extra police and security.
  • But the crowd surged during Scott’s show, authorities told The New York Times.

What happened at Travis Scott’s concert?

Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival experienced a mass casualty incident that led to eight people dead and hundreds injured, as I wrote for the Deseret News. The crowd surge caused widespread panic, which led to people fleeing the scene and trampling others.

What’s happening now with the Travis Scott concert?

Authorities continue to investigate what happened at the concert as multiple people remain in the hospital from the incident. Scott and Live Nation, the organizer of the show, said they will cooperate with the investigation.

  • Scott tweeted Saturday: “I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival.”