Culture, Manchester, News

“People were being trampled on”: Manchester fans relive moment they were caught up in Travis Scott Astroworld tragedy

1 971

Featured image: Instagramвзять быстрый займ на карту без отказа


“I honestly believe someone was watching us that night because it was so easy for the three of us not to come back.


Three music fans have described the terrifying moment they were caught up in the “deadly” crowd surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival in Houston.

Ten people died as a result of the event hosted by the US rapper in his hometown.

Multiple people were injured through a crowd surge. At least 50,000 gathered at the Texas event according to Houston Officials website.

Noah Hyams-Ssekasi, 20, and Kian Patel, 21, both from Bolton and Rayyan Nehal, 21, of Manchester, attended the event and witnessed the horrifying scenes of “people being trampled on”.

Noah said: “I saw 50-plus bodies getting carried over me left, right and centre.

“I had to stand on my tip toes and push my head up into the air just to try and get some cold air. 

“I’m not even religious but I honestly believe someone was watching over us that night because it was so easy for the three of us not to come back.”

The concert was stopped for a while as Travis Scott tried to spot people out of the crowd and direct medical attention towards them.

Viral video footage shows fans climbing onto camera platforms asking a TV crew to help people while others climb and jump up and down on ambulances.

Noah described scenes of “high intensity” from the morning of the concert. 

He said: “When the doors opened, I don’t know how it happened, but they just broke down the fence and everyone started running. There were three security guards and they didn’t stop anything. They were definitely shortstaffed.”

The Greater Manchester fans met the Houston rapper while he was doing a series of charity events and the musican took the time to speak with them, take photos and sign merchandise.

“I cannot lie, he made us feel on top of the world like he isn’t a joke to us we love him. The feeling that guy gave us,” said Noah.

During the festival Noah was worried he might be injured as a result of an elbow to the face and later on during the concert the friends were separated for over an hour.

Forty-five minutes before Scott’s set, Noah described “not being able to move his arms” and witnessing people “passing out and being passed over the crowd”.

Traviss Scott, AstroWorld, concert, crush
Noah, Kian and Rayan got their Travis Scott limited edition trainers signed by the rapper.

He also saw small-framed women and children trying to escape the crowds and getting pushed around. 

“There was nothing you could do but go with the motion. You’re not getting back up unless someone helps you. You can’t even see your feet so it’s hard to see anyone who’s down on the ground,” he said.

When the rapper made his entrance the crowd was described as ‘rushing forward’.

He said: “If you’re in the middle, you’re getting crushed and struggling to breathe.”

“I saw some guy’s head bleeding. One girl went down and when she got up her nose was destroyed. I’m pretty sure I saw someone dead, he was just pale, pure pale white.”

Noah says the three of them felt very lucky not to be seriously injured or worse.

The youngest tragedy was a nine-year-old Dallas Boy.

Noah said: “The more I talk about it the more you realise how you actually lived through a really traumatic experience, so we chose to go and leave some flowers at a self organised memorial.

“It’s just crazy. One 14-year-old kid went to see his favourite artist and didn’t come back.” 

The three music fans give thier condolences to all those who were injured and sadly didn’t make it. They want to encourage everyone to donate to the organisations decidated to helping the victim’s families and everyone that was affected. 

Links can be found on their Instagram post here.


This article was first published on The Northern Quota. For more news from Manchester follow @northernquota

About the author / 

Amir Williams

1 Comment

  1. Kerry Power 20th November 2021 at 1:41 pm -  Reply

    Shocking story, fascinating to read about the events from the perspective of those who were caught in the middle of it all. Thank you for sharing.

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More News Stories:

  • Harry is Home: From the BRITs to a Manchester one-night-only show – everything to know about Harry Styles’ return

    Featured image: Evangeline Causton  Local lad Harry Styles will take to the stage at Manchester’s Co-op Live for the city’s first-ever Brit Awards, before returning for his one-night-only show on March 6 to celebrate the arrival of his fourth album, Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally. When cryptic billboards bearing the words “WE BELONG TOGETHER” appeared across Manchester city…

  • Society Spotlight: Fashion Society – the creatives redefining Manchester’s fashion scene

    Featured image: Molly Goble and Anna Comerford aAh! Magazine fashion editor Imogen Burgess meets the Manchester fashion creatives rewriting the rules of the industry. Fashion has long been defined by its connection to exclusivity and elitism – an industry where “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” rings true. This phrase, also a…

  • Opinion: “There’s no replacement for third spaces”

    Featured image: Ciara Reynolds and Charle Mooney Every Tuesday, 91-year-old Joan walks from her flat to Turncroft Lane in Stockport to set up for the weekly ballroom dancing. Joan, a dedicated member of Woodbank Community Centre, has been attending ballroom classes for more than 20 years – and she has no plans to slow down anytime…

  • 5 places to live in Greater Manchester after you graduate

    Featured image: Aigerim Zhumabay Life comes at you fast once you leave uni. One of the biggest decisions you’ll make post-degree is where to set up home. If you plan on staying in Manchester, there’s so much more to the city’s suburbs than Chorlton or the familiar sights around the Oxford Road/Wilmslow Road corridor. Greater…