A hail storm at the Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre west of Denver left nearly 100 concertgoers at a Louis Tomlinson performance injured on Wednesday night, with at least seven requiring treatment at area hospitals.
The storm caused the concert to be cancelled, with hail still coming down in the area in the early hours of Thursday.
“Devastated about the show tonight, hope everyone’s ok, I’ll be back!” Tomlinson tweeted late on Tuesday night. “Even though we didn’t play the show I felt all of your passion! Sending you all love!”
The British “Back To You” singer-songwriter, who was formerly a member of the hit boyband One Direction, called off the show after large hail pellets hit the open-air venue Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
When the weather started getting worse, attendees were advised by the venue to wait in their vehicles until the storm cleared and they could resume the show.
“ATTN @Louis_Tomlinson concertgoers: We are currently in a weather delay. Please seek shelter in your vehicle and we’ll let you know when we’ve received the all clear,” tweeted the venue before the show started.
Then, an hour later, the venue tweeted: “Great news: we’ve received the all clear please safely return to the amphitheatre – the show will resume shortly.”
But less than an hour after issuing the tweet, the concert was called off altogether — with the venue announcing the show had been postponed.
“Please be safe exiting the amphitheatre - we’ll have more information for ticket holders soon,” the tweet read.
According to NBC News, nearly 100 concertgoers had minor injuries from the severity of the hail pellets. The WEst Metro Fire Rescue said that at least seven people were transported to the hospital with more serious, albeit non-life-threatening injuries.
"A total of 80 to 90 people treated on scene... Injuries include cuts and broken bones,” the fire department told NBC.
Severe thunderstorm warnings had been issued for the area, with some areas seeing “golf ball sized hail”, according to the National Weather Service.
Meanwhile, a number of concertgoers have been sharing pictures to social media of their injuries incurred from the severity of the hail pellets, some showing pictures of minor wounds and cuts.
“I’ve never been so scared in my life,” wrote one concertgoer on Twitter, who was visibly in pain as they shared a video of the large pellets of hail hitting them, saying “ouch” as people in the background screamed.
“Louis Tomlinson red rocks hail storm aftermath :( so scary,” wrote one user, sharing footage of an abandoned amphitheatre covered in a thick layer of hail pellets.
Another user posted a picture of the hail pellets in their hand, which appear to be the size of golf balls.
Some concertgoers have alleged that the venue did not deal with the situation adequately, leaving them waiting for the show’s organisers to make a decision on whether to cancel the show or not.
“This is crazy. yall couldnt decide on these delays before the apple sized hail started,” wrote one attendee on Twitter while waiting for the venue to give a final decision.
The Independent has contacted Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Tomlinson’s representatives for comment.
In several tweets, concertgoers have alleged that the venue called off the show too late.
“Ambulance arriving. Injuries reported. Windshields shattered. Irresponsible not to cancel sooner,” wrote one Twitter user.
