Ezra was on his dad's shoulders during the performance, and he fell to the ground as his dad passed out due to the pressure of the crowd.
A 9-year-old boy, who was on life support after he was trampled at Travis Scott's Astroworld festival has died, bringing the total death toll to 10. The tragic news was confirmed by Ezra Blount's family to ABC13 Houston. The boy endured life-threatening injuries, which put him on the ventilator, and in a medically-induced coma for over a week.
Ben Crump, attorney for the Blount family, said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE: "The Blount family tonight is grieving the incomprehensible loss of their precious young son. This should not have been the outcome of taking their son to a concert, what should have been 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."
Houston mayor Sylvester Turner also shared his condolences to the family via Twitter. He wrote, "I am saddened to learn of Ezra's death this evening," he wrote. "Our city tonight prays for his mom, dad, grandparents, other family members and classmates at this time. They will need all of our support in the months and years to come. May God give them strength. RIP Ezra."
Ezra Blount, the 9-year-old who was on life support after being trampled at Travis Scott's Astroworld festival has passed away, his family confirms. The death toll from the concert is now ten. pic.twitter.com/m5Q8yRyhat
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) November 15, 2021
Ezra's dad Treston Blount revealed that his son was a big fan of Travis Scott. "He was stoked. He was ready to go," Blount said. "When I found out that he was a big fan [of Travis Scott], I was like, "Oh yeah, we gotta go, we gotta go see Travis live."
So, when he and Ezra arrived at the concert, the two of them stayed at the back, because Blount knew the crowd up front could get a bit wild. "We was in the back, way in the back, and I figured, 'Okay, this is cool,' 'cause the front can get a little wild," the grieving dad said.
Treston Blount, Ezra's father, says he had his 9-year old on his shoulders during Travis Scott's performance at Astroworld a week ago today. Treston says he passed out and said he came to in a different part of the festival without knowledge of how he got there or where Ezra was. pic.twitter.com/0W1CC3SWuG
— Mycah Hatfield (@MycahABC13) November 12, 2021
He lifted his son and placed him on his shoulders, so Ezra could see the performance. However, the crowd got out of hand and Blount passed out from the pressure of the crowd. Ezra fell from his father's shoulders and was trampled. When Blount regained consciousness, he learned that his son had been rushed to the hospital as he'd suffered multiple internal injuries along with a brain swelling.
"I could tell that he was damaged," Blount said. "I'm not ready to lose my boy at all. We still got a bunch of living to do ... That's my boy."
My heart 💔 9 YO Ezra Blount who was trampled after falling from his fathers shoulders at AstroWorld has passed away at Texas Children’s Hospital after one week on life support. He fought hard but ultimately there was a different plan. Please raise his family in prayer #Abc13 pic.twitter.com/ThoqZ6u9Nb
— Stefania Okolie (@StefaniaOnABC13) November 15, 2021
The devastated family filed a lawsuit on November 9, 2021, against Scott, 30, and others alleging their "grossly negligent conduct" contributed to the child's life-threatening injuries. The suit "alleges negligence in a great number of aspects, including crowd control, failure to provide proper medical attention, hiring, training, supervision and retention," according to a press release issued by personal injury attorney Ben Crump and co-counsels Alex and Bob Hilliard, who filed the suit on behalf of the family.
Through a statement, Travis Scott said he "desperately wishes to share his condolences and provide aid to [the families] as soon as possible, but wants to remain respectful of each family's wishes on how they'd best like to be connected."
References:
https://twitter.com/SylvesterTurner/status/1460066802508173318
Cover Image Source: GoFundMe | Recovery of Ezra astrofest
