Bethenny Frankel is pledging to help a 9-year-old who was severely injured while attending travis-scott” target=”_blank”>Travis Scott’s< star shared a video on her Instagram Story and announced that her BStrong Foundation will donate $10,000 to the child’s family. Attorneys for the boy have referred to him as “EB.”
“Hey, so I’m reading about this 9-year-old boy … who was at that disastrous concert – which should be called a travesty, actually – and they have a GoFundMe page, and they’ve raised $14,000,” said the 51-year-old.
According to the genres, her charity has been focusing on homelessness but is determined to help the child and his family.
TRAVIS SCOTT REMOVED A HANDFUL OF SOCIAL POSTS WHERE HE ENCOURAGES FANS TO BE UNSAFE: LIVE UPDATES
Bethenny Frankel’s BStrong Foundation is noted for providing "emergency assistance to people in crisis, in partnership with Global Empowerment Mission."
(John Lamparski/Getty Images)
“BStrong has been fully functioning and mobilizing to help with the homeless crisis, and we are coordinating homeless holiday kits to give out – 1,500 boxes – because this is a challenging time emotionally, physically, so that has been our primary focus after Haiti and New Orleans,” she explained. “And now, BStrong is going to donate $10,000 to [EB’s] family. We will bring the aid to his family. And we want to know if you want to donate also. You can go on Bethenny.com/bstrong.”
The entrepreneur also took to Twitter and revealed that BStrong has a special connection to Houston because the organization was founded there after Hurricane Harvey.
“This is terribly upsetting,” she tweeted. “Hopefully we can help in some small meaningful way. We are focused on a homeless effort but taking time to shift focus here for a moment as it’s horrific.”
On Friday, the crowd at Astroworld in Houston suddenly surged toward the stage during a performance by the rapper, squeezing fans so tightly together that they couldn’t breathe or move their arms, killing eight people in the chaos. Over 300 people were treated at a field hospital on site and at least 13 others were hospitalized. The outdoor music festival, which was attended by some 50,000 people, is now the focus of a criminal investigation.
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Rapper Travis Scott was performing on stage when what authorities are calling a "mass casualty incident" occurred.
(Photo by Erika Goldring/WireImage)
Ben Crump of Ben Crump Law as well as Alex and Bob Hilliard of Hilliard Martinez Gonzalez confirmed to Fox News on Monday that EB’s parents had retained their counsel. The lawyers noted in their statement that the little boy has suffered life-threatening injuries and was placed in a coma to “combat his brain trauma.”
“The suffering that this family is going through is immeasurable. This little boy had his whole life ahead of him – a life that is currently hanging in the balance because of the reckless mismanagement that ensued at the Astroworld Festival,” Crump’s statement says. “We ask everyone to send up the most powerful prayers they can as this family tries to grapple with the undoable damage that has been done to their son. We demand justice for EB, his family and all of our clients that left Astroworld with trauma.”
On Tuesday, Crump and Hilliard confirmed in a statement on Fox News that they “have filed a lawsuit on behalf of the father of EB.”
“The lawsuit alleges negligence in a great number of aspects, including crowd control, failure to provide proper medical attention, hiring, training, supervision and retention. The lawsuit names Scoremore Mgmt, Live Nation Entertainment, Travis Scott, Cactus Jack Records and others as defendants. The lawsuit filing will allow independent experts commissioned by the legal team to access the roped-off crime scene at the festival,” according to the press release.
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Letters, candles and flowers are seen outside of the canceled Astroworld festival at NRG Park on Nov. 7, 2021 in Houston. According to authorities, eight people died and 17 people were transported to local hospitals after what was described as a crowd surge at the Astroworld festival, a music festival started by Houston native rapper and musician Travis Scott in 2018.
(Photo by Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images)
“This young child and his family will face life-altering trauma from this day forward, a reality that nobody expects when they buy concert tickets. Concerts and music festivals such as this are meant to be a safe place for people of all ages to enjoy music in a controlled environment. None of that was true about the Astroworld Festival,” Crump said. “This little boy is currently fighting for his life, and his parents will never know the same child they entered Astroworld with.”
“We plan to hold everyone who had a hand in this festival accountable for the horrifying and traumatic injuries that this helpless child sustained,” said Alex Hilliard. “Organizers have a duty and responsibility to protect their patrons and control the crowd when it gets out of control. It is outrageous that it took as long as it did to stop the show, as many of these deaths and injuries likely could have been prevented or mitigated.”
In the description for a GoFundMe page to raise money for EB’s medical bills, his father offered some chilling details about what happened to both him and his son while attending the show.
EB was sitting on top of his dad’s shoulders during the show when Drake took the stage with Scott. The crowd surge created deadly conditions for some at the concert as a mass of people began crushing one another.
EB’s dad was among the people getting crushed. He says he struggled to breathe and passed out. When he awoke, his son was gone. Based on EB’s injuries, which reportedly include brain damage and trauma to nearly every organ in his body, it seems he was trampled by the frantic crowd.
People pause at a makeshift memorial on Nov. 7, 2021 at the NRG Park grounds where eight people died in a crowd surge at the Astroworld Festival in Houston.
(Photo by THOMAS SHEA/AFP via Getty Images)
Scott publicly pledged to do everything in his power to help those impacted by the incident. The rapper, whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster, announced in a press release Monday that he is working with law enforcement and investigators to “respectfully and appropriately” contact the families of the victims so that he can do everything in his power to assist those affected “throughout their grieving and recovery process.”
In addition to covering the funeral expenses, the 30-year-old noted he has partnered with the therapy service BetterHelp, which will provide free one-on-one online therapy with a licensed therapist to those who want it. He is also working closely with NAMI, MHA National and MHA of Greater Houston (Mental Health America) to direct all those in need of mental health services.
Fox News’ Tyler McCarthy, Jessica Napoli and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
