201904.11
0

Small stampede sparked on Nipsey Hussle funeral route after Mylar balloons pop

by in News

Mylar balloons that popped when they hit electrical wires scared some fans of slain rapper Nipsey Hussle waiting outside a South Los Angeles strip mall on Thursday, sparking a small stampede that appeared to leave some with minor injuries.

Several hundred fans started running north on Slauson Avenue at the sounds of the balloons exploding. Some people who had been waiting behind metal barriers erected on the street were pushed to the ground as the barrier toppled over. Some lost shoes.

One woman was hit in the head and was bleeding. She was loaded into an ambulance.

Others appeared to have suffered twisted ankles.

The chaotic moment was brief, but left some shaken up.

After his funeral at Staples Center earlier that day, Hussle’s casket was expected to be brought in a motorcade to the strip mall, one of several locations planned for a nearly 25-mile procession through South Los Angeles.

Footage from a KCBS news crew showed a reporter being jostled as people ran from the area.

Los Angeles Police Department officers at the scene along with guards from the Nation of Islam in suits attempted to restore order after the chaos.

Thursday’s stampede was the second at that location since Hussle’s death last month.

Hussle, born Ermias Asghedom, was shot at the parking lot on March 31. He died at a local trauma center.

At a vigil at the parking lot on April 2, someone pulled out a gun, leading to a struggle to disarm him. That led to hundreds of mourners fleeing the area. During the chaos, 19 people were injured.

LAPD officials later confirmed that two people were shot as they fled during the panic. Detectives were investigating that shooting.

An LAPD spokesman confirmed the small stampede occurred Thursday, but no official information on injuries was available. On Twitter, the department asked attendees to “remain calm.”