Astroworld attendee is suing Travis Scott and Live Nation over injuries

An attendee of Astroworld Festival in Houston is suing Travis Scott over "preventable" injuries sustained following a deadly crowd crush that left 8 people dead and scores injured.

The crush happened on the first night of the scheduled three-day festival after parts of the crowd reportedly became squeezed against the stage and panic broke out.

Despite the crush beginning at 9:40PM the music wasn't halted until 10:10PM. Local authorities are still investigating the causes behind the tragedy.

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Festival-goer Manuel Souza has filed a petition with Harris County Court on Saturday alleging violence had "been encouraged" by both Scott and organisers Live Nation and ScoreMore.

The lawsuit is accusing the organisers of gross negligence and is asking for $1 million in damages.

Souza claims the festival had “a motivation for profit at the expense of concertgoers’ health and safety,” and organisers had ignored warning signs when “concertgoers breached a security gate around the park, stampeded into the premises, and trampled over one another.”

“Defendants failed to properly plan and conduct the concert in a safe manner,” reads a statement from Souza's attorney, Steve Kherkher.

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

Read this next: Travis Scott issues statement following tragedy at Astroworld festival in Texas

“Eventually, due to defendants’ active decision to let the show go on, the scene devolved into a complete melee, resulting in the needless, untimely death of at least 8 people and injuries to scores of others,” the statement claims.

The crush has been described as a "mass casualty event" by local authorities, 11 people were hospitalised in cardiac arrest, eight have died - with the youngest being just 14 years old.

Travis Scott released a statement on Saturday shortly after the severity of the casualties came to light.

“I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families ad all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival. Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life." he said.

Representatives for Travis Scott, Live Nation and ScoreMore have yet to respond to comment.

[Via: Billboard]

Megan Townsend is Mixmag's Deputy Digital Editor, follow her on Twitter