Two men who worked as security guards on the night of the tragic Astroworld Music Festival crush in early November are suing rapper Travis Scott, Live Nation, and others.
The security guards – Samuel and Jackson Bush now join hundreds of plaintiffs, mostly concertgoers who were either injured or killed at the event. The total number of deaths from the festival is ten persons ranging from 10-27 years old, while hundreds of others were treated at a makeshift field hospital set up on the night of the incident.
The two security guards claim that they worked at the festival along with an uncle and nephew on the night of the fest on Nov. 5th, and they sustained injuries.
According to Rolling Stone, the men said that they both sustained injuries trying to help concertgoers during the crowd surge.
According to Samuel, he was trampled multiple times, broke his hand, and hurt his back. His brother said that he sustained injuries to his shoulder.
The men are suing a long list of defendants – a total of 28 people and legal persons, which includes Scott and his label Cactus Jack Records, Astroworld promoters Live Nation and ScoreMore, venue NRG Park, and security companies Contemporary Services Corp and AJ Melino & Associates, the latter of which hired the brothers to work the concert.
According to the Bush brothers, AJ Melino & Associates took very few measures to prepare its contracted employees for the event and any possible situations that may have occurred.
The security guards say that the company failed to issue background checks to ensure guards were qualified for the task, and the company didn’t supply any training to do their jobs.
They also claim that they lacked the proper tools to work- they weren’t given walkie-talkies and so couldn’t communicate with their superiors as the crowd surge began.
Jackson Bush, in particular, says security guards were given no instruction before starting except that they should show up dressed in black.
“For the most part, they told us where to stand, not to let people run in, and to be safe and not to put our hands on anybody,” Jackson Bush said during a press conference. “There was no training,” he added.
The men say that they have also not been paid all monies owed by the security company. AJ Melino & Associates has not responded to inquiries by journalists for comment on the allegations.
However, the Lawyer for the Bush brothers said that “You’d think it’d take more than signing your name,” Larry Taylor said. “It was as simple as you and I walking on the other side of this gate.”
The lawsuit by the Bush brothers comes even as hundreds of concertgoers have filed lawsuits against Live Nation and Travis Scott, who they claim were negligent and caused them physical injuries and psychological trauma. The plaintiffs are suing for billions of dollars in damages.
