9-year-old Astroworld victim dies following coma
Nine-year-old Astroworld victim Ezra Blount has died after having been in a coma and on life support, bringing the Houston music festival's death toll to ten. A statement given to Rolling Stone by the Blount family's attorney Ben Crump reads, "The Blount family tonight is grieving the ultimate, incomprehensible loss of their precious young son. This should not have been the outcome of taking their son to a concert, a joyful celebration. Ezra’s death is absolutely heartbreaking. We are committed to seeking answers and justice for the Blount family. But tonight we stand in solidarity with the family, in grief, and in prayer."
Ezra's grandmother Tericia Blount previously spoke to Rolling Stone about the tragedy:
“He kept screaming, ‘I can’t breathe.’ But everyone was pushing. It was so tight with no exits. His dad couldn’t breathe at all and passed out. We don’t really know what happened to Ezra after that,” grandmother Tericia Blount tells Rolling Stone. The family later found Ezra at a nearby hospital listed as a John Doe, and his father raced to his side, she says.
“It’s horrific. We’re just hanging in there, trying to stay strong,” Tericia, who’s a nurse, says. “He has injuries to his kidney, to his lung, to his liver. Basically every organ has damage. He had cardiac arrest. His heart is weak and has damage as well. And his brain has swelling, and he’s in an induced coma. They’re just trying to keep him comfortable and trying to figure out a plan for him. They tried to take him off the medications that were paralyzing him, to keep him still, and they had to put him back on. We’re just at that place right now, just hoping for the best in spite of all the negative information.”
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Travis Scott, Drake, Live Nation, and others are facing numerous lawsuits following the tragic events. Travis Scott has promised to refund all Astroworld ticketbuyers and said he plans to cover funeral costs for the families of those who died at the festival.