Travis Scott performs during 2021 Astroworld Festival.Photo: Erika Goldring/WireImage
The CEO of the third-party medical company that ran operations atTravis Scott’s Astroworld Festival says his team faced what he called an “impossible feat” when treating victims at the deadly concert.
Hoping to “set the record straight,” ParaDocs CEO Alex Pollak spoke to reporters on Monday about the Nov. 5 tragedy — which left 10 people dead — revealing that staffers responded to 11 cardiac arrests at once,CNNreported.
ParaDocs did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
“This is something I’ll have nightmares about for the rest of my life,” Pollak said. “The team is extremely broken up about it. Seeing so many young people getting CPR at one time, it’s just something no one should have to go through. Even though we’re medical professionals, we should be used to it. You can’t get used to something like that.”
Though first responders are advised against entering dangerous situations such as acrowd surge— due to the risk of personal harm — Pollak said the medics made multiple rounds into the audience to help those in need as the situation escalated.
Travis Scott.Erika Goldring/WireImage
Detailing the intense situation, Pollak also shared that as medics performed CPR on the back of carts, other attendees began jumping on top of the carts, pulling them off people.
“They thought it was a joke,” Pollak said, CNN reported. “We never expected [in] our lives to encounter a situation like that. It was absolutely horrific.
Ten people died and more than 300 people were injured as a result of the fatal crowd surge at Astroworld Festival. At least 36 lawsuits have been filed against Scott and concert organizers over the incident, theHouston Chroniclereported.
The victims have been identified asEzra Blount, 9;Jacob Jurinek, 21;John Hilgert,14;Brianna Rodriguez, 16;Franco Patiño, 21;Axel Acosta, 21;Rudy Peña, 23;Madison Dubiski, 23;Danish Baig, 27; andBharti Shahani, 22.
One week after the fatal Houston concert, Scott’s attorney Edwin F. McPhersonsaid during an appearance onGood Morning Americathat there “obviously was a systemic breakdown that we need to get to the bottom of before we start pointing fingers at anyone.”
source: people.com
