(NewsNation Now) — A 22-year-old Texas A&M University senior has died of the injuries she suffered at Astroworld nearly a week after the event, according to the family attorney Thursday.
Bharti Shahani is the ninth person to have died as a result of the tragedy, when throngs of fans surged toward the stage during a performance by headliner Travis Scott. Hundreds of others were treated for injuries on-site and at least 13 were hospitalized.
Bharti died Wednesday night, her family’s attorney James Lassiter said during a news conference.
“Bharti was a shining star in the community,” Lassiter said. “She was a sister, a daughter, a high-achieving college student about to graduate from Texas A&M University with high, high grades.”
Shahani’s family said she had been studying electronics systems engineering.
Her mother, Karishma Shahani, became emotional during the news conference.
“What happened to her? I want my baby back. I’m empty here,” she said, pointing to her heart.
Officials have not disclosed details about the fans who have been hospitalized since Friday, but the family of a 9-year-old boy who attended the concert with his father has said the child was in a medically induced coma after suffering injuries to his heart, lungs and brain.
“They are asking for everybody to pray for a miracle,” Ben Crump, the family’s attorney, said on NewsNation Prime. “What was supposed to be one of the greatest memories of their lives is his worst nightmare.”
Travis Scott and his team released a statement Thursday that states:
Over the last week, Travis Scott and his team have been actively exploring routes of connection with each and every family affected by the tragedy through the appropriate liaisons. He is distraught by the situation and desperately wishes to share his condolences and provide aid to them as soon as possible, but wants to remain respectful of each family’s wishes on how they’d best like to be connected.
On Thursday, TMZ released festival radio traffic that revealed just how overwhelmed security officers and medics were.
“Folks are coming out of crowds complaining of difficulty breathing,” a person can be heard saying on the radio. “Crushing-type injuries. It seems like the crowd is compressing from what I can tell.”
The situation went from bad to worse.
“There are people trampled … They are not breathing,” another person can be heard saying. Someone on the other side of the line says HFD has been advised and “help is coming.”
Determining the timeline of events at the Travis Scott performance is a major focus of the city’s criminal investigation, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said Wednesday.
This story is developing.
