Second Naperville Native at Festival
Naperville native Jacob E. Jurinek, known as Jake, was one of eight people killed at the Astroworld Festival that took place in Houston, according to ABC News. He is the second person from Naperville who died. His best friend who was also from Naperville, Franco Patino, was another one of the casualties.
As reported by ABC News, the 20-year-old graduated from Neuqua Valley High School in 2019. “Our school community is saddened by the tragic loss of two former Neuqua Valley students – Jacob Jurinek, class of 2019 and Franco Patino, class of 2018,” said Neuqua Valley High School Principal Lance Fuhrer in a statement. “We are supporting our students and staff who knew these two young men and offer our deepest condolences to their families. We honor their friendship that has roots at Neuqua Valley and grieve alongside the communities of both the University of Dayton and Southern Illinois University.”
Jurinek was a junior at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. “Jake was beloved by his family and by his seemingly countless number of friends for his contagious enthusiasm, his boundless energy, and his unwavering positive attitude,” his family told ABC News in a statement.
Jurinek and Patino went to the festival to see Travis Scott to celebrate Jurinek turning 21 later this month on November 20, according to the Washington Post. Patino was a junior at the University of Dayton. His family said they found out about his death when the hospital called his mom from his cellphone, according to WGN.
What Happened?
On Friday, during a Travis Scott performance at the Astroworld Festival, there was a crowd surge where fans started pushing their way through people to get to the front toward the stage during the rapper’s performance at NRG Park stadium. It’s still not clear how this started.
“The crowd began to compress towards the front of the stage, and that caused some panic, and it started causing some injuries,” said Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña at a news conference reported by the Associated Press. “People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic.”
As of Saturday, a total of eight people have been reported dead and 13 out of 25 people who were taken to the hospital are still hospitalized. Five of those hospitalized are under 18 years of age. The youngest person who died was 14 years old. No one is reported missing.
“This incident is being thoroughly investigated and reviewed. Thoroughly,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner at a press conference. “It is important for us to ascertain from last night what took place, what happened, where missteps may have occurred.”
Naperville News 17’s Aysha Ashley Househ reports.