Festival-goers 'stretchered away' after fire sparks 'crowd crush' at London concert
A music festival in north London was abruptly cancelled after a fire sparked a crowd crush that left at least 23 people injured. Emergency services responded to the scene at Copthall Playing Fields, where attendees were seen being stretchered away following the surge.
Why it matters
Highlights significant safety failures at a public event and the resulting emergency response.
The crowd crush happened after a small fire broke out, police told Metro (Picture: Plus 1 TV)
At least 23 people were injured in a ‘stampede’ at a music festival in north London yesterday evening.
Ghana Party in the Park, a festival celebrating Ghanaian culture as part of ShattaFest UK, was ‘abruptly’ cancelled after the crowd crush at around 6pm.
A small fire broke out by the entrance of the event at Copthall Playing Fields in Barnet, causing a build-up of excited festival-goers.
When the gates reopened, dozens of people crammed into the park just after security.
Some festival-goers tripped over, trapping them under the surge of the crowd as guards tried to pull them free, footage from plus1tv showed.
Revellers continued to push through even as police officers and organisers used megaphones to tell them to stop.
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