Three hospitalised after Las Vegas’ Lovers & Friends Festival due to ‘security incident’
The festival was paused during crowd panic caused by reports of gunfire nearby
Three people have been hospitalised and more injured following a ‘security incident’ at Las Vegas’ Lovers & Friends Festival this past weekend, TMZ reports.
The incident took place on Saturday, May 14, on the first night of the Nevada-based festival. According to both TMZ and local NBC affiliate, News 3, reports of gunfire nearby caused hysteria as a crowd surge broke out.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police reported that the incident took place at around 10:PM, where false rumours of nearby gunfire caused a flood of people heading to the exit.
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“Shortly after 10PM, gunfire was reportedly heard near the site of the Lovers & Friends Festival, causing a large group of attendees to exit the venue,” The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told TMZ.
“Three people were transported to a local hospital with minor injuries. The show has since resumed.”
Injuries were minor, although three attendees were taken to the nearest hospital according to News 3. The show was paused briefly while the incident took place.
"The show has resumed at the Lovers & Friends after a report of gunfire heard near the festival was deemed unfounded. At this time, there is no evidence of a shooting,” LVMPD tweeted at 11:20PM on Saturday.
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Authorities identified the alleged shooting as a “false alarm”, and allowed the festival to resume on the evening and the following day on Sunday, May 15.
Videos emerged on Twitter both during and after the incident. When the show resumed, one attendee tweeted: “False alarm confirmed. Usher is on stage singing and giving out Usher Bucks. Everything is right with the world.”
Lovers & Friends Festival takes place annually in May. This year, headliners included Usher, TLC, Lauryn Hill, Nelly, Ashanti, and Lil Jon.
Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter