A Lil Wayne show in Atlanta has descended into borderline anarchy after the crowd abruptly rushed out of the arena following what police are stating were false reports of an active shooter.
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Lil Wayne had taken the stage for a planned set as part of the A3C Festival and was said to be roughly 5 songs into the set when the chaos erupted.
Initial reports are sketchy, but assert that someone in the crowd may have screamed that they heard gunshots, which caused a panic that quickly spread to the entire audience.
Security rushed Lil Wayne off stage quickly, which seemingly exacerbated the issue, causing the entire crowd to turn and run away from the stage.
Footage captured at the scene shows a hectic, chaotic situation with very little control from authorities.
Chaos erupted during Lil Wayne’s set at A3C tonight in downtown Atlanta. Fans went running when they thought they heard gunshots. Police tell us there is no evidence of a shooting but a dozen injuries were reported as fans ran away from the venue.
STORY: https://t.co/tb6hAtM0vW pic.twitter.com/ESKon0eY71
— WSB-TV (@wsbtv) October 8, 2018
I don’t know if they were shooting at the lil Wayne concert #a3cfestival #lilwayne but something happened that it ended fast! pic.twitter.com/RMBEFs4oMa
— ReginaldSaunders ♈️ 🎼🎧 (@IamRSaunders) October 8, 2018
Social media reports from punters at the gig state that a lot of people began running simply because everyone else was.
https://twitter.com/DavidDTSS/status/1049133497309437953
I don’t know what happened but #a3c is over. Everybody started ducking while Lil Wayne was onstage like someone in the crowd had a gun.
Security rushed Wayne offstage and everybody ran.
— Himmy Butler (@kidnoble) October 8, 2018
Not sure what just happened at Lil Wayne’s #A3C2018 show but I know cats started running and I ran widdem
— Mike Jordan. (@MichaelBJordan) October 8, 2018
Preliminary reports from Atlanta-area police asserted there was currently no evidence to back up people’s claim of hearing gunshots. The ensuing panic and rush has left approximately twelve people with minor injuries; mostly ankle sprains and lacerations from either running or trying to hop the festival ground’s fences.
Here’s a statement from APD about what happened at A3C tonight: pic.twitter.com/WKtafPcayZ
— Jewel Wicker (@jewelwickershow) October 8, 2018
Festival management issued a statement a short time ago confirming an altercation took place in the crowd that may have sparked the initial panic, but no weapons were involved.
— A3C Festival (@A3C) October 8, 2018
Meanwhile Lil Wayne has issued a short statement on the evacuation, simply stating that he hopes everyone present is now safe.
Hope everyone at A3C is safe!! 🙏🏽
— Lil Wayne WEEZY F (@LilTunechi) October 8, 2018
The investigation into the incident remains on-going.
