Hundreds of attendees at the annual Boston Calling music festival sought assistance from Boston Emergency Medical Services during the 3-day festival and nearly two dozen were taken to hospitals. Boston Calling featured more than 50 performers across four stages and three days. Headliners included Grammy Award-winning singer Ed Sheeran on Friday, acclaimed country singer Tyler Childers on Saturday and rock icons The Killers on Sunday. Boston EMS encountered nearly 800 festivalgoers over the three days. The agency said it spent months planning for the event and assigned more than 40 members to each of the three days of the festival, across four different medical stations. Temperatures in Boston reached 85 degrees on Friday, 72 degrees on Saturday and 69 degrees on Sunday. The heat played a major role in the medical encounters, a Boston EMS spokesperson said. According to a Boston EMS spokesperson, staff had 241 medical encounters on Friday with six patients taken to area hospitals. Staff encountered another 138 people on Saturday, of which four patients were taken to hospitals. On Sunday, EMS reported 412 encounters with 13 patients taken to hospitals. Samantha Baron, who attended Boston Calling, said the event was too crowded and she became trapped in the mass of people with her friends. “Nobody was moving, nobody was able to move. People were, kind of, being body-slammed. People were being elbowed,” Baron said. In response to concerns about crowding on Sunday, festival organizers posted a statement across social media on Tuesday. “We deeply appreciate the audience, staff, and performers who make Boston Calling possible, and want to acknowledge feedback from Sunday,” the statement said. “While attendee count was several thousand below the official capacity rating of the site, we never want anyone to feel uncomfortable or unsafe at the show. The safety and well-being of our fans, artists, guests and staff is paramount. We will continue to work with public officials and our operations team to improve the experience, layout, and ultimately create a better environment for everyone.”Video below: Ed Sheeran visits hospital patients before Boston Calling show
Hundreds of attendees at the annual Boston Calling music festival sought assistance from Boston Emergency Medical Services during the 3-day festival and nearly two dozen were taken to hospitals.
Boston Calling featured more than 50 performers across four stages and three days. Headliners included Grammy Award-winning singer Ed Sheeran on Friday, acclaimed country singer Tyler Childers on Saturday and rock icons The Killers on Sunday.
Boston EMS encountered nearly 800 festivalgoers over the three days. The agency said it spent months planning for the event and assigned more than 40 members to each of the three days of the festival, across four different medical stations.
Temperatures in Boston reached 85 degrees on Friday, 72 degrees on Saturday and 69 degrees on Sunday. The heat played a major role in the medical encounters, a Boston EMS spokesperson said.
According to a Boston EMS spokesperson, staff had 241 medical encounters on Friday with six patients taken to area hospitals. Staff encountered another 138 people on Saturday, of which four patients were taken to hospitals. On Sunday, EMS reported 412 encounters with 13 patients taken to hospitals.
Samantha Baron, who attended Boston Calling, said the event was too crowded and she became trapped in the mass of people with her friends.
“Nobody was moving, nobody was able to move. People were, kind of, being body-slammed. People were being elbowed,” Baron said.
In response to concerns about crowding on Sunday, festival organizers posted a statement across social media on Tuesday.
“We deeply appreciate the audience, staff, and performers who make Boston Calling possible, and want to acknowledge feedback from Sunday,” the statement said. “While attendee count was several thousand below the official capacity rating of the site, we never want anyone to feel uncomfortable or unsafe at the show. The safety and well-being of our fans, artists, guests and staff is paramount. We will continue to work with public officials and our operations team to improve the experience, layout, and ultimately create a better environment for everyone.”
Video below: Ed Sheeran visits hospital patients before Boston Calling show
