Red Rocks Amp refuses to cancel a show for severe weather, one day after over 90 concertgoers are injured in a hail storm
Written by: Katie Lock -- Follow her Twitter!
MORRISON, COLORADO - On Wednesday, June 21st, 2023, beloved Louis Tomlinson of the boy band One Direction held his first concert at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado. Red Rocks Amphitheater is home to many different bands and musical artists and hosts several different genres of music. The same day of the show, the National Weather Service (NWS) forecasted well in advance for severe storms with the potential for golf ball-sized hail moving through the area. The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) issued a Severe Thunderstorm Watch for the area at 1:32 PM CDT. The threats in the watch included widespread large hail with scattered very large hail events up to 3 inches in diameter likely, scattered damaging wind gusts up to 70 mph possible, and a tornado or two possible.
As was forecast by the NWS, storms began developing around the venue that evening which even prompted the show to go into a weather delay around 9:07 PM CDT. The venue was given an all-clear and the show was allowed to resume by around 9:35 PM CDT. At around 10:04 PM CDT, the first Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued by the NWS in Boulder for the venue for up to 50 mph winds and golf ball-sized hail. It wasn't until 10:14 PM CDT that the venue announced they were in a weather delay once again, but by that point, it was too late for the concertgoers.
You’d think that a venue as popular as Red Rocks in a place with such unpredictable weather as Colorado would have emergency protocols in place, especially after the already bizarre weather they’ve been experiencing during their concerts at the venue, such as wind and snow. However, the events that were to take place on the 21st would become traumatizing for over one hundred of their concertgoers due to the lack of emergency protocols. Videos went viral on Twitter of concertgoers running and seeking shelter during a hail storm with, you guessed it, golf ball-sized hail. Blogs were made on major news websites such as DailyMail.com.
If you are unfamiliar with Red Rocks, it is an outdoor music venue in the Morrison Mountains of Colorado and it’s known for its beautiful display of Colorado’s natural red rocks. With Red Rocks being an outdoor music venue, you can imagine that there is a lack of sufficient shelter, with the exception being maybe areas within the concession stands, bathrooms, and under trees for people to seek shelter under. During a thunderstorm, taking shelter under trees is not recommended or ideal considering the threat of lightning, and falling debris, especially during a hail storm that also has lightning. Louis Tomlinson fans were seen fleeing from the middle of the venue seeking shelter under trees on the outskirts of the venue, covering their heads with boxes, screaming in pain as the hail came down on them, running to the bathrooms, begging for entry into the concession stands in order to take shelter from the battering hail, all to no avail.
Red Rocks employees working in the concession stands refused the concertgoers entry. Some concertgoers even claimed that the workers stood and laughed and recorded them as they were pelted with hail. Almost 100 people were injured with bruises, lacerations, and even broken bones according to the local fire department that aided. Seven of those people were sent to the hospital due to their injuries while the rest were treated by personnel at the venue.
Red Rocks made little to no attempt to share their condolences for the people injured within their facilities offering their “sincere best wishes” to the whole of the state of Colorado rather than specifically the individuals that were harmed in their venue, per Red Rock’s Twitter account.
On Thursday, June 22nd, 2023, a band named Shakey Graves was scheduled to perform at Red Rocks. Once again, the NWS forecasted the threat of severe weather in the area with Severe Thunderstorm Warnings again being issued for the city of Morrison, Colorado, and surrounding areas. In fact, a tornado occurred not far from the Red Rocks venue around the Denver Metro area. After the events of the day prior, it likely would have been in Red Rock’s best interest to cancel and postpone the show knowing the threat of the same circumstances could occur again. However, Red Rocks chose to delay the show.
It is unclear whether or not concertgoers must sign any sort of waiver or agree to acknowledge the possibility of injury within the venue. However, after the events of June 21st and a large number of injuries along with the lack of emergency protocol and shelter issued by Red Rocks, it could be assumed that Red Rocks will have a large lawsuit on their hands in the near future, as many of the concertgoers of that night are claiming negligence against the venue and its staff. One thing is for sure, the price of the lawsuit will likely overcome the money made by the venue on the 21st and 22nd of June 2023.
