Astroworld Victims: Who They Were

3 years ago 279

The euphony festival astatine Astroworld successful Houston near 8 radical dead. Here is what is known astir them truthful far.

People posted messages to victims connected  a gross  extracurricular  the Astroworld festival tract  during a vigil connected  Saturday.
Credit...Annie Mulligan for The New York Times

Nov. 7, 2021, 3:34 p.m. ET

Excitement and adrenaline soon turned to panic and fearfulness arsenic a assemblage of 50,000 descended into chaos astatine the Astroworld euphony festival successful Houston connected Friday night. Unconscious bodies were lifted and surfed done the crowd, portion different attendees begged for the performance to halt arsenic they watched others astir them collapse.

Hundreds of people, including a 10-year-old child, suffered injuries. Some were rushed from the NRG Park successful Houston, wherever the festival took place, to hospitals. By Saturday afternoon, Houston’s politician confirmed that 13 victims stay hospitalized, including 5 minors.

And 8 people, ranging successful property from 14 to 27, with 1 property unknown, were dead. Here is what we cognize astir immoderate of the lives that were lost.

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Credit...Patino Family

Franco Patino, 21, a elder astatine the University of Dayton successful Ohio, was among those who died astatine the euphony festival, the assemblage and 1 of Mr. Patino’s brothers confirmed.

Mr. Patino, who was from Naperville, Ill., was majoring successful mechanical engineering exertion with a insignificant successful quality question biomechanics, the assemblage said successful a campuswide email connected Saturday. Mr. Patino was a subordinate of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and Alpha Psi Lambda, a Hispanic involvement fraternity, the assemblage said.

A brother, Julio Patino Jr., said his younger member was readying to prosecute a vocation successful biomedical engineering and had a peculiar involvement successful prosthetics. Julio Patino Jr. said his member was progressive successful unpaid enactment and regularly sought to assistance others.

“He was conscionable that benignant of person,” helium said. “He was ever determination for the radical helium cared about. He had a large heart.”

He described his member arsenic an avid video crippled subordinate (“Call of Duty” was a favorite) who competed successful football, rugby and wrestling successful precocious school. He said his member had been to different concerts without incidental but that this was his archetypal clip attending the Astroworld festival.

“This should person ne'er happened,” Julio Patino Jr. said of the deaths astatine the euphony festival. “There should beryllium much rules successful spot to forestall this successful the future. They should person stopped the performance close distant arsenic soon arsenic each this started happening.”

Green ribbons appeared astatine Memorial High School, conscionable extracurricular of Houston. It was the favourite colour of John Hilgert, 14, a freshman, who was the youngest idiosyncratic to dice astatine Astroworld, according to the authorities.

He told friends that helium wanted to get to the show by the rapper Travis Scott aboriginal to get a bully view, The Houston Chronicle reported. Now, household members, friends and erstwhile coaches were near to marque consciousness of his death. On societal media, those who knew Mr. Hilgert told akin stories of a young, benignant lad who was known for being a bully pupil and an jock who played shot and football.

“The kid impacted everyone that met him,” Justin Higgs, a erstwhile shot manager of Mr. Hilgert, wrote connected Facebook. “Privileged to person had the accidental to manager him during those seasons of his life.”

Mr. Hilgert’s principal, Lisa Weir, sent an email to the full schoolhouse the greeting aft the concert, identifying Mr. Hilgert arsenic 1 of the victims. The schoolhouse volition person counselors disposable to speech to students.

“He was 1 of the nicest kids I knew and ever made radical laugh,” a person tweeted.

Brianna Rodriguez, 16, was a pupil astatine Heights High School successful Houston and a subordinate of the schoolhouse band, which paid tribute to her Saturday connected Twitter.

“Brianna was idiosyncratic who performed with the set and was idiosyncratic who could ever marque anyone smile,” the set said. “Although she’s gone and she cannot execute with america anymore, we cognize she’d privation to inactive bask our clip successful heights.”

In an automated telephone telephone connected Saturday to parents, the school’s principal, Wendy L. Hampton, said that a pupil had died connected Friday nighttime portion disconnected field and that grief counselors would beryllium available. The telephone did not place the student.

On a GoFundMe page raising wealth for ceremonial expenses, Ms. Rodriguez’s household said that she was passionate astir dancing.

On Sunday, Erica Davis, a trustee for the Harris County Department of Education, shared photos of her connected Twitter.

“There is nary level supra Tragedy … my bosom mourns for families and each who experienced this,” Ms. Davis said.

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Credit...GoFundMe

Rudy Peña was identified by a cousin, Kimberly Escamilla, arsenic being 1 of the victims. “Rip to my cousin,” she wrote successful a Facebook post, “you volition beryllium missed.” She described him arsenic “always smiling and truthful nice.”

His sister, Jennifer Peña, told The Laredo Times that helium was “the sweetest person, friendly, outgoing.” She said that Mr. Peña had been taken to Ben Taub Hospital successful Houston, wherever unit members told Mr. Peña’s parent that helium had died.

The member of Danish Baig described him successful a Facebook post arsenic a “beautiful soul” who enactment “everyone earlier himself.”

“I americium scarred for life,” said the brother, Basil Mirza Baig. “You were my relation model, and I person truthful overmuch symptom successful my heart. I can’t judge I mislaid you.”

Basil Baig, who attended the festival, said his member died arsenic helium tried to prevention a sister-in-law from “horrendous things that were being done.” People were “trampled, walked and stomped on,” helium wrote.

“In this clip of mourning and grief and specified pain, I would similar everyone to commune for my household and my brother,” helium wrote.

Reporting was contributed by Melina Delkic, Eduardo Medina, Christopher Mele and Neil Vigdor. Jack Begg contributed research.

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