Travis Scott sued by family of 9-year-old left in a coma after Astroworld tragedy

10 November 2021, 11:43 | Updated: 10 November 2021, 11:55

Travis Scott makes statement after tragic deaths at Astroworld Festival

As Astroworld lawsuits hit 19 and counting, the latest comes after 9-year-old attendee Ezra Blount is left in a medically induced coma from the stampede

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

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.

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".

Travis Scott 'attended after-party with Drake' following festival disaster

9-year-old 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".

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".

The first lawsuit came from injured attendee Manuel Souza filed a petition on Saturday in the Harris County District Court.The lawsuit claims the disaster was the direct result of a motivation for profit at the expense of concertgoers’ health and safety and the encouragement of violence.

"Defendants failed to properly plan and conduct the concert in a safe manner" wrote Souza’s attorney, Steve Kherkher of the firm Kherkher Garcia LLP.

"Instead, they consciously ignored the extreme risks of harm to concertgoers, and, in some cases actively encouraged and fomented dangerous behaviors".

The second lawsuit filed was on Sunday by Texas attorney Thomas J. Henry on behalf of an unnamed Astroworld attendee. Whilst Travis and Drake continued to perform onstage, it’s alleged that "emergency vehicles arrived and responders attempted to rescue those in distress".

"There is no excuse for the events that unfolded at NRG stadium on Friday night. There is every indication that the performers, organisers, and venue were not only aware of the hectic crowd but also that injuries and potential deaths may have occurred. Still, they decided to put profits over their attendees and allowed the deadly show to go on,” Henry claimed.

A third lawsuit has also been filed by civil rights and personal injury attorney Ben Crump on behalf of another Astroworld attendee named Noah Gutierrez.

"We are hearing horrific accounts of the terror and helplessness people experienced – the horror of a crushing crowd and the awful trauma of watching people die while trying unsuccessfully to save them" the law firm wrote in a statement released on Twitter.

"We will be pursuing justice for all our clients who were harmed in this tragic and preventable event". In his statement, Crump said he expects to be filing on behalf of other victims next week.

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".

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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.

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