Capitol Hill Block Party attendees complain of crowd crush

Some who attended Capitol Hill Block Party on Friday said the event became uncomfortably overcrowded, with reports of people collapsing.

SEATTLE - This year's Capitol Hill Block Party music festival became so overcrowded Friday that it caused multiple people at the event to collapse, according to those who attended the festival.

Several users on social media claim the crowd became especially crammed during Friday's performance by Chappell Roan, some saying they were unable to move because it was so congested.

Many of the complaints were made as comments on the Capitol Hill Block Party's Instagram, citing issues like bad crowd control, a lack of water stations, and no access to exits.

Some attendees reportedly saw medics struggling to get through the crowd to provide medical attention.

"Somebody went down probably three or four people in front of us," said Thomas Donnelly. "No medics seemed to come for 10-15 minutes."

Donnelly said this year was his first time attending Capitol Hill Block Party, and that it may be his last.

"We did Burning Man last year and Burning Man in the mud was safer than the Block Party," Donnelly said.

The Seattle Fire Department says it had two EMTs staffed at the event, and an extra crew was called in at 8:26 p.m. to help out due to there being more than three patients being assessed at one time.

According to the Seattle Fire, EMTs evaluated and treated about 33 people on Friday for minor injuries and complaints at the event. Some of the patients reported feeling dizzy, required band-aids, or had blisters.

A woman in her 20s was also taken to an area hospital via ambulance, but is in stable condition.

On Saturday, about 40 people were treated or evaluated at the event. Data is not yet available for Sunday.

Several photos Donnelly took at the event show the shoulder-to-shoulder crowd stretching far from the stage.

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via Thomas Donnelly

Crowd crush is when a body of people becomes dangerously overcrowded, usually leading to people getting pushed or pressed up against each other. One example is Travis Scott's 2021 Astroworld music festival, where a major crowd crush claimed the lives of 10 people, including a Western Washington University student.

These controversial complaints come as event organizers work to address safety concerns following last year's festival. A fatal shooting happened just a couple blocks away from the event in 2023.

Not only did the crowd crush hinder the festival experience for many, but several Block Party performances also had to be moved on Saturday due to the CrowdStrike global tech outage.

A spokesperson for Capitol Hill Block Party issued FOX 13 Seattle the following statement in response to the complaints:

"We made a considerable effort to ensure additional safety/crowd management throughout the weekend, particularly in anticipation of a sold out day of the festival on Friday.
Ahead of the event, we worked with the Seattle Police Department and Seattle Fire Department to arrange onsite safety and crowd management support (including EMTs, several specialty units and numerous officers inside and outside the festival) for roughly 10,0000 guests inside the festival footprint, as well as more people gathered in the surrounding streets beyond our gates. We also hired 100+ security personnel to help with crowd management over the course of the weekend, the majority of which were onsite on Friday.
We adjusted the main stage perimeter barriers to ensure those that needed to be escorted outside of the crowd for health reasons could do so more efficiently. We also made adjustments to the entire festival footprint to provide better foot traffic mobility. We developed a comprehensive risk management plan, emergency procedures, communication protocols, and evacuation plans capable of accommodating a crowd of this size. Of note, police coverage extended through the entire night, well after the festival concluded.
Throughout the month ahead of the festival, we advised guests coming specifically for Chappell's set on Friday to stay hydrated/fed and be mindful of their health. As we do every year, we encouraged attendees to bring reusable water bottles, sunscreen and be respectful of this shared space. In addition to numerous volunteers distributed throughout the festival to keep an eye out for those in need of help, members of our staff and security monitored the crowd from various vantage points to identify and support guests in need of assistance in real-time.
New to the festival this year, we upgraded our sound system to extend to 11th street, along with two monitors to ensure the performance could be enjoyed further down the Pike corridor in anticipation of a larger crowd. We also significantly enhanced our ADA section, which accommodated roughly 100 individuals with disabilities throughout the weekend to ensure our main stage was accessible and inclusive.
The safety of our guests, artists and staff is our number one priority. We anticipated and planned for a large audience and took additional steps to address security concerns proactively for this year’s festival. We also give immense credit to the security staff and attendees that helped create a safe and welcoming environment for fellow guests. Though we recognize there were a variety of experiences throughout the festival, we witnessed many of our guests taking care of one another and mindfully sharing this space as our security staff handed out earplugs and water to those who needed them.
We were thrilled to see the incredible interest and excitement surrounding this year's festival, especially with the rising popularity of our performing artists. This enthusiasm reflects the vibrant and dynamic music scene that our festival celebrates. We are committed to creating a safe, enjoyable, and memorable festival experience for everyone, and will continue to examine our security measures closely and adjust certain aspects for each iteration of the festival."