(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Four people were hurt last week at a Wal-Mart near El Paso, Texas, when thousands of fans showed up to get autographs from members of Mexican pop group R.B.D.
During the autograph session, the crowd got out of control and thousands of people at the store were evacuated. Police also responded to a nearby hotel where the six-member group was staying, because about 100 people showed up there as well.
The group, who is wildly popular in Spanish speaking countries worldwide from their teen soap opera show “Rebedle” (“Rebel”), also played the El Paso County Coliseum that evening, where fire marshals had to close the doors early, leaving many disappointed concert-goers outside, according to KFOX-TV in El Paso.
Spanish-language radio station EXA-FM was the major promoter for both the autograph session and the concert, both of which fire and police officials say they underestimated crowds.
Emergency calls from Wal-Mart began coming in when an estimated 10,000 people gathered. The event had to be shut down after only 15 minutes, after police said the store failed to maintain fire department access and fire lanes, impeding the response of emergency vehicles.
Management at the radio station told the news channel that they were disappointed with how the concert was handled by the fire department. They say they were only responsible for the concert, and it was Wal-Mart organizing the autograph session. –by CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
