Osheaga 2024: Best tips to survive a crowd crush during festivals, and what to do in the potentially-deadly scenario
If you find yourself in a very dense crowd, there are several things you can do to ensure you're able to breathe and survive.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Contact a qualified medical professional before engaging in any physical activity, or making any changes to your diet, medication or lifestyle.
From music events like Osheaga and the notorious Astroworld Festival, to religious gatherings such as the annual Hajj pilgrimage, massive crowds are — no doubt— quite dangerous. Over the last several decades, there have been numerous tragic crowd accidents globally that have seen dozens, if not hundreds, of unfortunate deaths.
Most recently, a crush in northern India at the start of July saw at least 121 people die during a religious gathering, after 250,000 people attended an event that had an 80,000-person cap. A deadly crowd crush also occurred in October 2022 in Seoul, South Korea, where 159 people celebrating Halloween died in a narrow alley. In 2015, the deadliest Hajj disaster in history took place in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where more than 2,400 pilgrims died in a crush and stampede in Mina, according to the Associated Press.
Worldwide, there have been more than 280 crowd accidents between 1900 and 2019, according to one database. Those tragedies have occurred in a range of countries, like the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States, as well as India, China and Brazil.
If you have plans to attend an event that attracts a large number of people, such as the Osheaga Music and Arts Festival in Montreal from Aug. 2 to 4, there's no need to panic and cancel your ticket or worry to the point where you don't have fun. Rather, use this guide to learn more about crowd crushes — and what you should do if you find yourself in one.
What is a crowd crush?
A crowd crush is when a group of people are so close together that no one is able to move. These events become a recipe for disaster when you combine overcrowding and unmanaged crowds with spaces that are wide and suddenly become narrow, creating a bottleneck. In these cases, a crowd crush may occur when people are pushed into a confined area — either while trying to enter or exit.
When it comes to how many people should be in a crowd, the density should never rise above four people a square metre. Especially if that exceeds six people per square metre, the risk of an accident rises, the Guardian reported in 2022.
"When people are closely packed together, a small movement can ripple through the crowd and cause further pressure," John Drury, an expert on the social psychology of crowd management at the University of Sussex, said.
Why is a crowd crush dangerous and sometimes fatal?
The most common injury and death related to a crowd crush is compressive asphyxia. This is a type of physical asphyxia where an outside force — like another human or a wall — prevents you from expanding your chest to breathe.
According to Health, humans can only survive four minutes without breathing before permanent brain damage occurs. Moreover, it only takes one to two minutes for someone's blood oxygen levels to fall enough where they lose consciousness. If those levels are too low, it can result in cardiac arrest.
"You need to expand your rib cage, and you can't because the pressure is so great. With that lack of oxygen, you just cannot breathe. It's suffocation. It's horrible, slow and extremely painful. You're terrified," G. Keith Still, an author and professor of crowd science at the University of Suffolk, told the Toronto Star in 2022.
How is a crowd crush different from a stampede?
A crowd crush differs from a stampede essentially because in the latter, people have room to run. Stampedes occur when people are excited or frightened, and run towards something they want or if they're fleeing a perceived threat.
"In a crowd crush, there's nobody running. They're crushed," Still explained. "So a crowd crush is a slow buildup of density, with people unable to breathe. ... There's nowhere for that pressure to go, and so it ends up with a progressive crowd collapse."
Edwin Galea, a crowd behaviour expert at the University of Greenwich, told the Guardian in 2022 the term "stampede" is wrong: "It is a loaded word as it apportions blame to the victims for behaving in an irrational, self-destructive, unthinking and uncaring manner."
He added the term implies the crowd was mindless and prepared to crush people. Instead, he noted the true blame lies in authorities for "poor planning, poor design, poor control, poor policing and mismanagement."
What should you do if you're in a crowd crush?
As soon as you arrive at a venue or location, a good practice is to immediately identify exit points. World Nomads shared it's a good idea to start leaving a space if you begin feeling uncomfortable in a crowd. Moreover, it's worth it to note most people leave that decision until it's too late.
If you find yourself trapped in a crowd and that the situation is becoming unsafe, try following these tips to survive:
Keep your eyes open: Scan the area and try to exit calmly and safely, moving toward wherever the crowd thins out.
Leave at the right time: The longer you wait to leave, the harder it will be to escape — don't hesitate if you feel uncomfortable.
Stay upright: If you can't flee, keep your body upright and maintain your balance, avoiding a domino effect.
Save your breath: Don't scream unless necessary — you want to avoid asphyxiation.
Keep your arms at your chest: Fold your arms in front of you like boxer to protect your ribcage and allow some space so you can breathe.
Go with the flow: If you're being pushed in a crowd, resisting wastes energy and can topple your balance.
Avoid barriers: However, skip the previous step if you're being pinned against a wall or other solid object, as this can lead to you being crushed.
Understand density signs: If you're accidentally bumping into other people around you or if you can't freely move your hands to the point where you can't easily touch your face, you're in a space that's too dense.
Stay away from panic: In the case of a panic, try and escape the crowd and stay far away, as the movement can be more dangerous.
Help each other: A united crowd is more likely to survive than an individualistic crowd, so remain kind and offer help when possible.
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