Woman Who Was Hospitalised Following Crowd Crush At Concert Has Died

Nigerian Afrobeats singer Asake has shared his grief following the news that Rebecca Ikumelo, a 33-year-old London resident, died after experiencing injuries from a crowd crush at his concert last week.

Metropolitan Police confirmed that she passed away on the weekend. Two other young women remain in the hospital and in critical condition.

Asake responded to the terrible news, writing on social media: "I am devastated by the news that Rebecca Ikumelo who was in a critical condition since Thursday has passed away.

"My sincerest condolences to her loved ones at this time. Let us please keep her family in our prayers." The Sungba artist added, "I am overwhelmed with grief and could never have imagined anything like this happening."

Asake and his team are awaiting a debrief from Metropolitan Police and the O2 Academy in Brixton to determine what caused the crowd crush that ultimately led to Ikumelo's passing. 

As reported by The Sun, a Metropolitan Police representative said that the police were alerted to a massive group of people trying to enter the O2 Academy in Brixton on Thursday night without tickets - the show was Asake's third and last show at the venue; the crowd crush occurred after he posted on Instagram that tickets were completely sold out.

"Emergency services attended the O2 Academy in Brixton following reports that a number of people had been injured after a large crowd attempted to gain entry without tickets. Four people are in critical condition at hospital. Officers will remain in the area to provide reassurance," the representative commented. 

Commander Ade Adelekan added, “This is an extremely upsetting incident which has left four people critically ill in hospital. A police investigation has been launched, and it will be as thorough and as forensic as necessary to establish exactly what happened last night."

Yesterday, eight people were rushed to the hospital, with four in critical condition. The crowd crush led to the show being called off mid-concert, with a man holding a microphone telling confused audience members: "3,000 people have broken the doors outside. Because of security, the police have asked us to close the show... this is nothing to do with us."