Festival Fiascos Events

1969 Dec 6 Altamont Free Concert
On December 6, 1969 the Rolling Stones organized - if that's the right word - and headlined the free Altamont Music Festival at the Altamont Speedway in northern California. This was a fe...
1970 Aug 26
to 1970 Aug 31
 Isle of Wight Festival 1970
"This is the last festival, enough is enough , it began as a beautiful dream but it has got out of control and become a monster." —Ron Foulk -promoter
1985 Jun 1 Battle of the Beanfield
More than 300 people have been arrested after an attempt by police to prevent a convoy of hippies reaching Stonehenge led to a violent confrontation. The travellers were on their way t...
1999 Jul 23
to 1999 Jul 25
 Woodstock 1999
Despite the years of planning, bathrooms had not been taken into consideration and as a result, none were built. Instead, we were offered portable johns, the closest Port-a-Potty being ap...
2000 Jun 30 Nine Crushed to Death by Crowd at Roskilde Festival
Nine festival-goers died as the crowd surged forward on a muddy farm field during a Pearl Jam concert. Twenty-six people were injured, three of them seriously. Of the fans that died, one ...
2002 Aug 23
to 2002 Aug 25
 Leeds Festival Degenerates into Riot
Pulp, the Strokes and Slipknot had all played to a peaceful crowd of 50,000. But the sister to Reading festival ended in disaster as police were attacked with bottles and stones. ...
2005 Jun 24
to 2005 Jun 26
 2005 Glastonbury Festival
Lightning strikes!!! Two months worth of rain in several hours! A once in a hundred year occurrence! For those unfortunate enough to get swamped, Welfare were there to give a helping hand...
2008 Jul 5 Laser Show Blinds Ravers at Festival Outside Moscow
"I immediately had a spot like when you stare into the sun After three days I decided to go to the hospital. They examined me, asked if I had been at Open Air, and then put me straight ..." —Rave-attendee Dmitry
2009 May 24 Eleven Killed in Mawazine Festival Stampede
The tragic incident happened on Saturday night, when spectators were packed into the Hay Nahda stadium to see Morrocan singer Abdelaziz Stati. It's a pity that such a thing happens at ...
2009 Jul 16 Severe Winds and Fire Mar Benicassim Festival
On a bad day for the festival, a bush fire close to the site had earlier delayed Paul Weller's set by 40 minutes. At 9pm a large area of long grass and trees next to the CN-340 road in...
2009 Aug 1 Storm Crushes Main Stage at Big Valley Jamboree Music Festival
Nashville musician Billy Currington had been performing before the structure collapsed. A member of his band was pulled from the wreckage with a badly injured and bloodied arm. Mari...
2009 Aug 8 Hard Summer Fest 2009 Shut Down for Overcrowding and Disorderly Conduct
What will go down as the worst show in the electronic festivals history, Hard Summer Fest 2009 was abruptly stopped mid-show and eventually canceled due to over-crowding and fire code vio...
2010 Jun 25
to 2010 Jun 26
 Widespread OD's, Arrests, and One Death at the Electric Daisy Carnival
[Deputy Chief Pat] Gannon indicated it was common knowledge there could be trouble, given that such events are notorious for illicit drug use. "When you hire two dozen private ambulanc...
2010 Jul 24 Love Parade Disaster
Nineteen people were crushed to death on Saturday after a wave of panic swept through this year's Love Parade street party in the German city of Duisburg, north of Dusseldorf, police said...
2010 Aug 14 Tila Tequila Attacked at Gathering of the Juggalos Festival
Reality TV star Tila Tequila suffered facial cuts when she was pelted with rocks and bottles while performing at a music festival in Illinois early Saturday, according to a witness and a ...
2010 Aug 29 Russian Skinheads Attack Music Festival
About 100 skinheads attacked crowds of revellers at a Russian rock festival yesterday, injuring 19 people, reports in the Russian media say. The state-run Rossiya 24 television channel...