GloRilla has expressed her devastation after her concert in Rochester, New York resulted in a second death stemming from a crowd stampede.
Tragedy struck at the “Tomorrow 2” hitmaker’s concert at the Main Street Armory on Sunday night (March 5), where attendees rushed for the exits following unconfirmed reports of shots being fired inside the venue.
10 people were injured amid the crowd panic, including a 33-year-old woman named Rhondesia Belton who died from her injuries after being transported via ambulance to hospital.
According to CBS News, the death toll has risen to two after a 35-year-old woman succumbed to her injuries late Monday (March 6). She was one of two victims listed in critical condition after the deadly concert.
A further seven people were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the Rochester Police Department.
“I am devastated & heartbroken over the tragic deaths that happened after Sunday’s show,” GloRilla tweeted late Monday. “My fans mean the world to me [sad face emoji] praying for their families & for a speedy recovery of everyone affected.”
I am devastated & heartbroken over the tragic deaths that happened after Sunday’s show. My fans mean the world to me ????praying for their families & for a speedy recovery of everyone affected ????????
— GloRilla ???? (@GloTheofficial) March 7, 2023
Police responded at 11 p.m. on Sunday night based on initial reports of shots being fired inside the Main Street Armory, which has a capacity of 5,0000. Fellow Memphis rapper Finesse2Tymes was also reportedly on the bill.
However, an investigation later revealed that none of the injuries were consistent with gunshot wounds and police are still investigating the possible cause of the crowd surge, “including crowd size, shots fired, pepper spray, and more.”
“I’m just now hearing about what happened wtf [sad face emojis] praying everybody is ok [prayer hand emojis],” GloRilla initially wrote on Twitter while reacting to the tragic news.
Rochester Mayor Malik Evans called the fatal stampede “totally unacceptable” and promised a thorough investigation into whether the venue had the necessary safety measures in place for a large crowd.
“We are going to hold people accountable for what happened last night, period,” Evans said, although he cautioned that it was too early in the investigation to point fingers. “I intend to get to the bottom of this.”
He added: “If you go to a concert, you do not expect to be trampled. Your loved ones expect you to be able to come home and talk about the experience that you had at that great concert.”
The Main Street Armory’s next scheduled show, a March 11 performance by A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, has since been canceled.
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