Fans who attended the concert of singer and songwriter Phoebe Bridger last night at Toronto’s Echo Beach report crowding problems and say some attendees were injured and lost consciousness.
Those who were at the show say it was stopped at least five times for people to receive medical attention.
Kevin Kania attended the concert on Tuesday night, arriving around 7:30 p.m.
“I didn’t experience any push or push,” he told CTV News Toronto on Wednesday, adding that he witnessed other fans losing consciousness.
“I saw maybe three security guards show up and pick up who fainted and get them out of the crowd,” he said.
Toronto paramedics confirmed that they attended the event and transported two people to the local hospital with minor injuries, adding that others were expected to fall unconscious.
Erin Laidley said she arrived at the show around 7:30 p.m., and that the venue, at the time, was a disaster for those who had been waiting all day for the concert.
“I’ve never been to a show where so many people fainted or needed medical attention,” Laidley said. “Many people near the front camp had been camping in the rain for more than 12 hours to get a barricade, so some of the medical calls may have been due to fainting from dehydration or not eating enough before the show “.
Another aide, Sammy Talukder, told CTV News Toronto that they experienced the assault and saw injuries inflicted.
“I experienced a lot of pushes and pushes when they let me into the place,” Talukder said. “I almost fell on a huge rock, they stepped on my foot and pushed me a lot.”
During what he dubbed a “stampede,” Talukder said he saw that “people were being beaten and pushed to the ground.”
“I saw a girl get punched and bleed.”
Kania said she couldn’t say what caused the “chaos.”
“I’m not sure I’ve seen a band stop playing due to a medical event in the crowd once, let alone five times,” he said. “I saw a lot of people camping hours early, maybe they would have forgotten to eat or drink enough.”
At the time, Kania said it was “mostly confusing.”
Talukder added that “the place allowed everyone in, so it was extremely disorganized.”
“Sending about 200 people [in] at the same time it was definitely not a good idea and caused a stir, “he said, adding that” the place was very disorganized. “
In a statement to CTV News Toronto, a spokesman for Live Nation Canada said the concert was “proactively stopped a few times so that medical staff could help fans suffering from dehydration.”
“Safety is always our top priority and we have been working closely with medical authorities throughout the night.”