Tuesday | November 9th, 2021

It’s Tuesday, November 9th, and this is your Morning Wire. Listen to the full podcast:

1) Tragedy At Travis Scott Concert 

The Topline: Tragedy struck a music festival in Houston this past Friday during a performance by rapper Travis Scott. Fans were crushed when the crowd surged toward the stage, leaving eight people dead and dozens more injured.

Quote Of The Day: “It felt like we [were] in a concert in Hell. You couldn’t breathe. You couldn’t see, like just imagine all the people they’re going to find tonight who [were] in that crowd who nobody could see, who nobody could hear who passed out…”

Erika Goldring/Contributor/WireImage via Getty Images

The Tragedy

Around 50,000 people attended what was scheduled to be a two-day event. 

Earlier in the day, thousands of aggressive fans stormed the event gates, rushing past security and toppling fences and metal detectors.

As Scott took the stage at about 9p.m., fans surged toward the front, creating a crush of bodies, leaving many unable to breathe.

A local fire chief said the rush to the front sparked a panic and security personnel were overwhelmed. People started falling down, but the crowd kept trampling those under foot as some were screaming for help but couldn’t be heard over the music.

Police also confirmed reports that someone was injecting people with drugs without their knowledge. A security officer was injected in the neck with an unknown substance, but thankfully medical responders were able to revive him with Narcan.

In all, 8 people died, with the youngest 14 and the oldest 27 years old. Over a dozen are still hospitalized.

Travis Scott

Scott stopped the show a few times when he noticed emergency crews moving to attend to injured fans, but the rapper says he didn’t realize how bad the situation was.

Scott started the Astroworld festival in part as a charity endeavor. A significant portion of the revenues go to organizations that fund education programs for underprivileged kids.  

He’s said he’s “devastated by what took place,” and “Houston PD has [his] total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life.”

Legal Action

The Houston Police are investigating the incident, but no one has been charged with anything yet. 

Two lawsuits were filed over the weekend against both Scott and rapper Drake. Another had been filed against promoter Live Nation and the venue, NRG park.

One concertgoer who filed

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