At Least 8 Dead After Travis Scott Astroworld Festival Mass Casualty Incident in Texas, Houston Fire Department Confirms

At least eight people have died after a mass casualty event at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival in Houston on Friday night.

Houston Fire Chief Sam Pena provided details regarding the incident in a press conference early Saturday morning after panic broke out when the crowd surged toward the concert stage.

"We had at least eight confirmed fatalities tonight. Eight confirmed fatalities and we had scores of individuals that were injured here at this event. We had an attendance of approximately 50,000 to the Travis Scott Astroworld Festival event. What we do know is that at approximately 9 o'clock, 9:15, the crowd began to compress towards the front of the stage and that caused some panic and it started causing some injuries. People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic," he said.

"The Houston Fire Department transported at the start of the mass casualty incident when it was triggered … at around 9:38 p.m. this evening, after that time we transported 17 patients to the hospitals. 12 of those patients were transported by Houston Fire Department ambulances, five were transported by Harris County emergency services, 11 of those that were transported were in cardiac arrest. We won't know the cause of death of the eight that are confirmed until the medical examiner has completed his investigation, but we are in the process, the Houston Police Department is sending units out to the hospitals to identify these patients, these fatalities," Chief Pena continued.

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This year's festival took place at NRG Park in Texas after skipping 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and has been canceled for Saturday evening.

According to a source, Kendall and Kylie Jenner were both in attendance at Friday night's festival, but were not harmed.

"Everyone is shocked and upset. Kylie and Kendall were in the audience, but they are not injured. Travis won't be performing tonight. The concert is canceled," said the source.

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Festival organizers released a statement early Saturday morning following the accident.

"Our hearts are with the Astroworld Festival family tonight - especially those 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," they wrote.

"As authorities mentioned in their press conference earlier, they are looking into the 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," the festival continued.

A reunification center has been set up at the Wyndham Houston Hotel.