Three in hospital after fire and crush at festival in London

Three in hospital after fire and crush at festival in London Organisers of Ghana Party in the Park, also known as Shattafest UK, said the event at Copthall Playing Fields in Barnet was halted after a “major incident” shortly after 18:00 BST on Saturday. A small fire broke out near the venue’s gates, prompting officials to close them temporarily. As a crowd gathered, the gates were reopened and a surge of attendees followed, according to the Metropolitan Police. Police reported that officers responded quickly, working alongside festival organisers to create a barrier between the surging crowd and people on the ground. Officers, the unit said, gave initial medical care, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). A total of 23 people received some form of assistance either from the emergency services or the festival medical team, with nine people assessed by the London Ambulance Service. Three were taken to hospital, where their condition was confirmed as non‑life‑threatening. The festival was ended early, and crowds dispersed without further incident. Organisers said the decision to stop the event was made on health and safety grounds. In a statement they described the day as “one of the most difficult” in the event’s history and called what happened “deeply upsetting”. A spokesperson for the organisers explained: “Once the incident had been addressed and the affected area declared safe, normal festival operations resumed.” They added: “Later in the day a crowd surge at the festival entrance resulted in several attendees sustaining injuries.” The spokesperson wished “all those who sustained injuries a speedy recovery, and safe travel back home to everyone,” and clarified: “We would like to clarify that there were no incidents of stabbing and deaths as [was] being speculated.” Firefighters, the ambulance service and an air ambulance all attended the scene. After the fire was dealt with and the area deemed safe, festival activities briefly resumed before the later crowd surge prompted the organisers to close the event for safety reasons.