10 Deaths at Astroworld Festival Ruled Accidental by County Medical Examiner

The deaths of 10 people at Travis Scott’s 2021 Astroworld Festival have been deemed accidental by the Harris county medical examiner.

According to reports, the medical examiner’s findings eliminated homicide as a cause of death and showed that the concertgoers — Mirza Danish Baig, Rodolfo Angel Pena, Madison Alexis Dubiski, Franco Cesar Patino, Jacob E. Jurine, John W. Hilgert, Axel Beltsasar Acosta Avila, Brianna Rodriguez, Bharti Shahani and Ezra Blount — died from compression asphyxia. UT Health Houston acute care trauma surgeon Dr. Ron Albarado described it as a condition that is “caused by a force from the front or back preventing the lungs from expanding,” with deaths possibly taking place in a span of 15 to 20 minutes during a crowd surge.

“This re-opens a fresh wound for many families who are still trying to make sense of what happened,” Harris County’s Lina Hidalgo said in a statement.

Attorney James Lassiter, who represents the Shahani family, said, “Bharti Shahani suffered a horrific death as she was suffocated within a massive crowd.”

Reuters added that the ruling of the medical examiner could change the course of the ongoing criminal investigation. No charges have officially been filed as of writing, however there are approximately 200 lawsuits against Travis Scott, Live Nation, NRG Park and other entities in regards to the tragedy.

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