Eight people died and over three hundred people were injured at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival last weekend in Houston, Texas following a crowd surge that led to a stampede. Fans in attendance have been sharing firsthand accounts of what happened, including videos and photos, which have been heartbreaking to read and watch. Many festivalgoers have complained about how NRG Park was understaffed with security last weekend, and now a man that was hired to work security at the event is speaking out, echoing that sentiment.
In a video interview with TMZ, Darius Williams, who was hired by a company called Contemporary Services Corporation (CSC) to work event security at Astroworld, claims that the festival was “severely understaffed” and unprepared to deal with a tragedy of this magnitude.
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Williams says that he was hired a few days before the festival began, and his role was not properly explained. He says that he only found out he was working front-gate security when he arrived on the festival grounds and asked right away to be moved to a different area because he was uncomfortable with the training he received. Williams revealed that he needed to pass an open-book exam before being hired, but teachers were allegedly giving him and others the answers needed for a passing score. He completed his training the day before Astroworld, but he ended up bailing on the job when he arrived at NRG Park because he was uncomfortable with the incompetence he witnessed.
Williams immediately realized that the festival was understaffed when he got there, saying that there was approximately one security guard for every five hundred people. He says that other guards expressed a desire to leave as well, especially after being asked to work a security role despite having no security background.
Listen to his account below.