Brixton Academy: What happened in the crush? - BBC

Three radical are critically injured aft a crush astatine a gig successful Brixton, southbound London. How did it happen?

While galore details are inactive unclear, the BBC has pieced unneurotic this relationship from verified societal media videos and eyewitness accounts.

Doors astatine the O2 Academy Brixton were owed to unfastened astatine 19:00 GMT for the amusement by Nigerian Afrobeats vocalist Asake. An update from the artist's Twitter account up of the archetypal of a tally of shows astatine the venue promised DJs playing from 19:15 but warned: "Please bash not travel to Brixton Academy if you bash not person a valid ticket."

It promised the "usual information measures" would beryllium successful place.

On Thursday night, video posted by astir 20:00 extracurricular the Brixton Academy showed lone a comparatively tiny fig of radical were gathered outside.

But TikTok idiosyncratic yupitslydia posted a video showing what she said was the country astatine 21:17. By that point, a assemblage of hundreds was unopen retired of the venue. "They're not letting anyone wrong and the queue is each astir the building," she said.

Police accidental they were called astatine astir 21:30. A video uploaded to Twitter astatine that clip shows a ample but seemingly peaceful crowd wholly filling what seems to beryllium 1 of the tiny roads by the broadside of the venue - believed to beryllium Astoria Walk.

"The constabulary person locked disconnected Asake and person near a clump of radical successful an alley successful the freezing cold," said the Twitter user, @__93_Mide.

One video shows what it was similar right by the locked doors of the venue. Twitter idiosyncratic DammySNM posted it with the message: "They request to adjacent down o2 Brixton."

In the footage, radical are packed tightly up against the doors and look to beryllium jostling with each different to make space. The assemblage surges somewhat 1 mode and past the different arsenic radical look to propulsion back.

Outside the venue entranceway connected the main road, Solomon Smith, laminitis of Brixton Soup kitchen, films constabulary moving barriers. "Are they helping america oregon are they blocking us?" helium wonders successful the footage, posted to Twitter and TikTok later.

Some clip later, helium films the assemblage pressing hard against the doors, which are buckling inwards. Eventually they springiness way, and the assemblage begins to surge inside, with constabulary officers incapable to halt them.

Footage from conscionable wrong the entranceway shows dozens of radical rushing in. Meanwhile, Asake's show was nether mode with respective videos showing a ample assemblage already wrong the auditorium.

It is not wide what clip Asake took the stage, but respective societal media posts said helium lone made it done a mates of songs earlier the amusement was unopen down.

Using an expletive, Asake announced from the signifier that determination was occupation extracurricular and they had to extremity the show.

"I don't cognize why. It's not me," helium said, earlier leaving the stage.

Someone other walks connected to connection a much elaborate explanation: "We person to halt the amusement due to the fact that they person breached the door. You've got 3000 radical who person breached the door, and due to the fact that of security, the constabulary person asked america to halt the show. It's for your security, it has thing to bash with us."

Others marque akin announcements and yet refunds are promised successful an effort to transportation the assemblage to leave.

The Met Police said nary constabulary dogs were utilized successful the response, but different footage shows the venue's information guards with a fig of dogs connected leads.

The timings and series of these events cannot yet beryllium confirmed, but societal media footage shows respective instances of unit betwixt members of the assemblage and police.

Another bid of videos shows chaotic scenes conscionable wrong the venue doors, with a ample assemblage extracurricular and wrong the venue, respective radical unconscious connected the level and a subordinate of unit appearing to execute thorax compressions.

Other footage appears to amusement 1 subordinate of the assemblage knocked to the crushed by others.

Several videos amusement a pistillate struggling with constabulary conscionable wrong the entranceway to the venue, earlier officers propulsion her down the steps extracurricular the venue, to screams from a watching crowd.

Met Police Commander Colin Wingrove said an incidental erstwhile an serviceman is "apparently seen to propulsion a subordinate of the public" is nether reappraisal by the directorate of nonrecreational standards.

The Met said 1 idiosyncratic was arrested connected suspicion of assaulting a constabulary serviceman during the incident.

Reporting team: Daniele Palumbo, Paul Myers, Sherie Ryder, Serene Khalifeh, James Kelly, Rozina Sini, Bernadette McCague, Kris Bramwell