Houston fire chief says Travis Scott ‘absolutely’ should have ended concert when crowd surge started

After seeing the horror in Houston, the fire chief said Travis Scott should have stopped his Friday night Houston concert. Eight people were killed as they tried to get a better look at him.

Speaking on NBC’s Today show Tuesday morning, Fire Chief Samuel Peña said, ‘The artist has command of that crowd. 

According to me, the artist can halt a performance if something is happening, then turn the lights on and tell the audience, “Hey! We’re stopping until we get this problem resolved.”

In the opening night of Astroworld Festival’s third year, eight people died and many were hurt. Scott founded the festival in an annual fashion and it is named after the album he released in 2018. Around 50,000 people attended.

After revelations about Scott’s two pleas guilty to inciting disorder at his shows including an Arkansas concert, where an officer said he’d lost count of how many he needed to assist out of the pit, DailyMail.com obtained a police statement.

Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña says Travis Scott should’ve ‘absolutely’ stopped Friday’s Astroworld show when he saw people struggling

Peña added that he wasn’t ‘prepared to say that [Scott]They were fully conscious of the situation. Above: Scott performs at Astroworld, where eight people were killed.

Regarding Friday’s show, Peña clarified that he was not blaming Scott for starting the crowd surge.

“I am not ready to tell that.” He said, “I’m not ready to admit that he knew everything.”

Following a performance at Chicago’s Lollapalooza festival in August 2015, Scott pled guilty to reckless conduct after his fans jumped a security barricade. According to local reports, the rapper was 29 years old and fled the scene. However, he was quickly arrested.

According to the Office of Emergency Management, the performer performed one song before telling his fans to cross the barricades. The security team quickly responded and the situation was resolved immediately. No fans were hurt.

The same cannot be said of his May 13, 2017 show in Roger, Arkansas, for which Scott later pled guilty to disorderly conduct after he encouraged fans to rush the stage and bypass security at the Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion.

CHICAGO 2015:  Scott pled guilty to misdemeanor reckless conduct after his fans jumped a security barricade at the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago

ARKANSAS 2017, Scott encouraged his fans to rush onto the stage, despite security at a show that took place in Arkansas May 2017. The next year, he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct.

A police report, and footage from the event show that Scott said to the crowd, “This pit seems empty. I don’t know if you are scared, but this is your last chance.” They got through security, they were let through.

Scott directed approximately 2,000 people onto the stage, according to Lt. David C. Jones. Jones was performing extra duties at the concert.

Jones stated that he worked his way to the pit after the incident to help the security personnel and other officers. This was according to a DailyMail.com police report.

Many fans recall Scott’s Arkansas 2017 show’s chaos. Police say that one woman suffered from ‘convulsions after being pulled out.

“Once I had been in the pit, I helped several people get out of it. Because one of the women we pulled out of the pit was unconscious, she had to be brought with us. She was unconscious when we carried her to the security gate and laid her down on the ground. Then she began having convulsions. 

I had to dial 911 to request an ambulance be brought back on stage. It was impossible to count the people I helped out from the pit. 

“Most were young women who were crying, visibly upset, and complaining about being pushed or hit against security barriers. 

Scott was confronted by officers after an alleged crowd surge, footage of which is from Scott’s 2019 Netflix documentary Look Mom! I Can Fly.

Scott was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, later saying: ‘I feel bad though. I heard about kids getting hurt and s***.’

Scott (above in his mugshot following the Arkansas 2017 arrest) pled guilty in 2018 to Disorderly Conduct and paid an amount of more than $7,000 in fines

Jones estimated that 17 concertgoers were required to be transported to the emergency room after the crowd surge, but the final count is most likely higher.  

Scott encouraged his audience members to climb onto the stage and dive into the crowd.

Scott left the stage and he didn’t ask for anyone to rush him, as stated by Lt. Jones.

He was handcuffed, searched and taken to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office. According to KFSM, he eventually paid $7,465 in fines.

The Arkansas concert and subsequent arrest were featured prominently in Scott’s 2019 Netflix documentary Look Mom I Can Fly.

Astroworld’s main stage was in a lot near the NRG Center. This is where Travis Scott performed Friday night when a fervent crowd of eight killed him.

The manager of the venue warned employees that many people would try to escape and reach safety, as they cannot breathe.

“Kids press up against front and spread across that, filling in the entire front,” said the manager to backstage staffers, which was also shown in documentary.

“You’ll find a lot crowdsurfers in general but you also see many kids who are trying to get away and escape because their airway is so small.

“You will not know the extent of our problems until you turn on.”

This is similar to the stories of people who were present Friday night’s crowd. They said they gasped for air and felt like Scott had just come onstage.

They range in age between 14 and 27. They were Axel Acosta Avila, 21; Danish Baig, 27; Madison Dubiski, 23; John Hilgert, 14; Jacob Jurinek, 20; Franco Patino, 21; Rodolfo Peña, 23; and Brianna Rodriguez, 16. 

A 2019 documentary shows Scott, born Jacques Bermon Webster II, telling an Arkansas crowd: ‘Before I go to this next song, I’m gonna invite just a couple more people down here to rage with these motherf***ers down here.’

It shows the crowd pushing forward in this documentary. The documentary shows Scott running through the backstage with a staffer following him and telling him not to enter that crowd.

ASTROWORLD VICTIMS: Brianna Rodriguez, 16, (left) was a dancer and junior in high school. Rodolfo ‘Rudy’ Pena, 23,(right)  was an aspiring model and dreamed of one day being a US Border Patrol agent. He was struck with cardiac arrest and died.

ASRTROWORLD VICTIMS – Danish Baig (27), died at Travis Scott’s Astroworld. He had saved a relative in the Friday stampede, according to his brother. Franco Patino, 21 (right), also died, the University of Dayton said

John Hilgert (14 years old) was one of eight victims in Friday’s horrific crush that killed 8 people at Houston’s Astroworld Festival.

Scott’s comments from the audience are also displayed, although it is not known if all of them were part of Rogers’ Arkansas crowd.

Another participant stated, “I believed I was going to death.” One audience member continued, “I thought that I would die.”

Leah Belay is a University of Arkansas student located 23 miles north of Rogers. She recalls feeling at ease right up to Scott’s arrival on stage.

Security at the Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion is usually tight, Belay told DailyMail.com, but the crowd got rowdier as Scott’s set neared and eventually ignored all rules when he asked them rush to the front.

“Is this he real??” Then people began running down the street to get to the pit. It became increasingly chaotic, with people jumping over the railings.

“That was when I realized that I was in danger of going any further,” she stated.

Belay wasn’t able to see anyone needing medical attention in either the chaos or the aftermath, however she said Scott’s arrest later may have been a factor in the absence of rap concerts around the region.

She said that the incident left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.

Scot, upon his release from prison, told his team that he felt bad. I heard about kids getting hurt and s***. I just hate f****** getting arrested, man, that s***’s whack,’ according to the documentary.

Scott must be held responsible for Friday’s tragedy, according to the family and friends of the victims and hundreds injured.

On Monday, relatives were still trying to come to terms with what happened to their loved ones. The disaster saw people aged 14-27 being crushed to death by Friday’s blast. A large group of those in attendance marched toward NRG Park while a countdown clock ticked down until the beginning of the performance.

Rachel (a woman who will only be identified as Rachel) was angry at Franco Patino’s death. Franco Patino, 21, was an Illinois native and was studying at University of Dayton, Ohio. 

She tweeted, “My friend is gone FOREVER due to Astroworld,” 

The anger over it is mad. Travis Scott will have to do much more than just post an apology in notes.

Troy Finner of Houston police, who is acquainted with Scott, felt that it was important to give back his home town. He visited Scott’s trailer just before the show.

According to a New York Times source, he told megastar he was worried about the energy of the crowd.

Scott kept performing even though first responders declared an event as a’mass causalty’, for more than 30 minutes. His music was drowned out by the crowd’s desperate pleas to help. 

Finner later stated that the security guard who was trying to restrain someone else felt something in his neck.

They administered Narcan. Finner reported that the doctor administered Narcan to him and that he was revived.

According to sources close to the investigation, they are now investigating whether bad batches of drugs with synthetic opioid fentanyl may have been involved in Friday’s fatal srugging.

“There are possible scenarios that are being considered, including malicious attacks, and laced tablets,” a Wall Street Journal source said. He also noted that the authorities had launched an investigation into criminal homicides, and drugs. 

Scott shared his thoughts on the tragedy via an Instagram video.

Scott stated, “My fans truly mean the world to my and I want them to have a great experience.”

“Whenever I am able to see the situation, I will stop it and help the person in need. It was beyond my comprehension.

Scott and Drake were onstage together Monday night when Drake made his first comment on the tragedy.

Kristian Paredes (23), from Austin, Texas filed a lawsuit that DailyMail.com obtained Sunday

Houston’s music festival witnessed a raucous crowd surge toward Scott’s performance. It knocked other concertgoers off the stage and squeezed them so tight that they couldn’t breathe or move their arms.

The rapper said, “To those who lost their loved ones last night,” and that he was working to identify the families in order to help them get through this difficult time.

‘I’m honestly just devastated… I could never imagine anything like this just happening.’

Scott stated that he was working with the local authorities to investigate the crowd surge. He also encouraged any witnesses with information regarding the incident to contact Scott.

Following the tragic concert Kylie Jenner was with Kendall and her pregnant girlfriend Kylie Jenner.

I want to be clear that until we heard about any fatalities, the show was not over. In no way would the crew have stopped performing or filming.

“I send my condolences and prayers for healing to the affected families.

Edgar Acosta was the father of Axel, who died on Friday. A press conference was held in Houston on Monday with Tony Buzbee, an attorney.

Scott and Drake were sued by an Astroworld festivalgoer for more than a million dollars. He claimed that the rappers incited the crowd, which left him “severely hurt” and eight other people dead.

Kristian Paredes (23), from Austin, Texas filed the DailyMail.com Sunday complaint accusing Live Nation Entertainment Inc. and Harris County Sports and Convention Corporation, of negligence.

According to the complaint special guest Drake appeared on the stage with Travis Scott, and it was said that he incited the crowd.

Edgar Acosta announced Monday that he would also be suing Texas attorney Tony Buzbee for the death of Axel Acosta (21 years old)

He stated, “They have to change these events.”

“Today was all about me. 

‘I lost my son. Acosta suggested that it might have been you.