Police are still investigating the cause behind the crowd surge at the Astroworld concert that claimed eight lives, which ranks as one of the more deadly crowd crushes in recent years.

In 2015, a collision of two crowds at the hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia led to the death of more than 2,000 people.

In 2010, around 18 people were trapped and crushed during an electronic dance music festival in Germany.

In 1989, 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death at the Hillsborough football stadium in England during FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.

In 1985, 39 people died in a stampede before the start of the European Cup Final between Liverpool and Juventus in Brussels, Belgium.

And in 1979, at least 11 people died at a The Who concert in Cincinnati after concertgoers rushed the entrance.

In a statement released following the deadly crowd surge at Astroworld Festival on Friday, Drake said that his “heart is broken” for the families of those who lost their lives.

“I hate resorting to this platform to express an emotion as delicate as grief but this is where I find myself,” said the 35-year-old rapper.

Drake, who made a guest appearance during the Houston festival, said he spent the past few days trying to “wrap” his mind around “this devastating tragedy”.

“My heart is broken for families and friends of those who lost their lives and for anyone who’s suffering,” he continued. “I will continue to pray for all of them and will be of service in any way I can. May God be with you all.”

Read the full report here:

Travis Scott has been replaced by Post Malone as the headline act for Saturday at the Day N Vegas Festival this weekend, the event’s promoters have confirmed.

The change comes after Scott pulled out of the event following the deadly crowd surge at his Astroworld concert.

He was “too distraught to play”, Variety had reported earlier on Monday. “Travis Scott will no longer be performing at Day N Vegas. The security and safety of all attending Day N Vegas has been and is always top priority in our festival planning,” read a post on Day N Vegas’s social media account. “We continue to work hand in hand with law enforcement, medical personnel and public safety agencies on our protocols for the weekend.”

Experts are questioning if having only one stage operating during Travis Scott’s performance on Friday played a role in the tragedy that unfolded, claiming eight lives.

“If you have a multi-stage setup, you would assume people would be distributed among stages,” London-based crowd science professor Keith Still told NBC News.

The event’s two-stage setup was supposed to be used as a measure to control the crowd, Houston fire chief Samuel Pena said on Saturday.

“Part of when we have large events, one of the things that we consider is to ensure that the crowds are subdivided,” he said. “They had two separate stages in two separate areas. That was part of the plan.”

For this strategy to be effective, comparable artists must use the different stages at the same time, veteran Los Angeles festival promoter Reza Gerami told the news network. But the performances had wrapped up on the second stage by the time Travis Scott stepped out on Friday night, meaning the main stage was the only place to be for the entire festival audience.

It is at the moment unclear if the police are looking into stage setup as a part of its probe in the tragedy.

The FBI has reportedly joined the criminal investigation into the Astroworld concert tragedy that claimed eight lives and left multiple injured.

The development was reported by multiple American news organisations including CBS, ABC and NBC News, though the agency has not yet issued a statement confirming this.

A nine-year-old boy is among the five people in the ICU fighting for their lives after being trampled at the Astroworld music festival on Friday. Ezra Blount fell from his father’s shoulders on Friday after the man passed out from the crowd pressure of thousands of people.

The boy’s organs are reportedly damaged and he is suffering from brain swelling.

Read the full report here:

While police are leading two separate investigations into the mass casualty incident on Friday at the Astroworld concert, there are growing calls from experts for an independent review of the tragedy.

Experts in crowd safety believe that, given the police’s involvement in managing safety at the Houston incident, a probe by an outsider could help avoid potential conflicts of interest and promote greater transparency.

Houston Police Department spokesperson Jodi Silva refused to comment on questions regarding the concerns of conflict arising out of the department’s close involvement in the event. She also did not elaborate on whether the department is considering handing the probe to another agency, reported AP.

“All of the information we have available to put out at this time has been placed out on Twitter,” said Ms Silva.

Earlier on Saturday, Harris County judge Lina Hidalgo called for an “objective and independent investigation into what happened.”

Rafael Lemaitre, a spokesperson for the county judge’s office, said that the police department’s probe would be separate from an independent investigation ordered by Ms Hidalgo. He added that the judge has not decided who would conduct the independent review.

“She wants to know if this could have been prevented in any way,” Mr Lemaitre said. “It’s also entirely possible that it was not preventable for whatever reason, and that’s something we would like to know, as well.”

In a statement issued on behalf of the family, Kim Kardashian has said that she was “absolutely heartbroken” by the mass casualty incident at the Astroworld concert.

“Absolutely heartbroken for the lives who were lost and anyone who was hurt at Astroworld,” said Kardashian West, whose sister Kylie Jenner is the partner of rapper Travis Scott. “Just like all of you, our family is in shock by the tragedy.”

In a follow-up tweet, she extended her support to Jenner. Scott is at the centre of the fallout over the disaster, which many concertgoers have said they feel was preventable.

“We are keeping all of the victims, families and loved ones impacted in our prayers for healing- as well as Travis who we know cares so much about his fans and is truly devastated.”

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner has issued a statement in which he confirmed meeting Travis Scott and his head of security last Friday prior to the main event at Astroworld. In the meeting, he conveyed his concerns regarding public safety, he said in the brief statement released on Houston Police’s social media handle.

“I expressed my concerns regarding public safety and that in my 31 years of law enforcement experience I have never seen a time with more challenges facing citizens of all ages, to include a global pandemic and social tension throughout the nation.”

Mr Finner added that he asked Scott and his team to work with the police “for all events over the weekend and to be mindful of his team’s social media messaging on any unscheduled events.”

“The meeting was brief and respectful, and a chance for me to share my public safety concerns as Chief of Police,” said Mr Finner in the statement.

Axel Acosta, 21, had travelled to the Astroworld Festival site from Washington and was among the last victims to have been identified. His family learnt about his death from social media, said the family lawyer.

His father, Edgar Acosta said that when they heard about the tragedy at the event, they immediately called their son. When he did not answer, they called the hotel where he stayed. The hotel staff informed him that their son did not spend Friday night there, reported CBS affiliate Khou.

“Axel was not the kind of young man that didn’t answer his phone or did not stay in touch with his brother or dad. They knew something was up,” said the family lawyer, Tony Buzbee.

When they called the police and the reunification centre, they were informed that Axel was neither on the list of injured nor the dead. The hospital also asked the family to not worry, as they reiterated the same.

It wasn’t until a photo began circulating on social media, that Edgar learnt of his son’s death. “The way they found about this is horrific,” said Mr Buzbee.