Mexico City mourns 2 photojournalists killed at AXE Ceremonia music festival

Two photojournalists were killed astatine a Mexico City euphony festival Saturday nighttime erstwhile a scissor assistance displaying a decorative carnivore collapsed.

Berenice Giles, 28, and Miguel Hernández, 26, were pronounced dormant soon aft the accident, which occurred astir 5 p.m. connected the festival grounds astatine Bicentennial Park. The 2 photographers were besides alumni of the National Autonomous University of Mexico’s Aragón (FES Aragón UNAM) field successful eastbound Mexico City. 

Despite the calamity and a suspension bid from borough officials, organizers of the AXE Ceremonia festival allowed the performance to proceed for respective hours earlier the amusement was yet unopen down betwixt 1 and 2 a.m. Sunday.

The organizer Grupo Eco continued posting connected societal media astir the concerts, mentioning aboriginal successful the time that 2 radical had been injured successful an accident. 

Late Saturday, Mexico City officials canceled the 2nd time of the festival, ordered Bicentennial Park unopen down and announced they would unfastened an investigation. By dawn connected Sunday, borough officials had sealed disconnected the park’s entranceway and dispatched constabulary to the area.

On Sunday afternoon, friends, colleagues and concert-goers mourned the victims and demanded justness astatine a vigil extracurricular the gates of the park. 

Several successful attendance expressed indignation that neither performance organizers nor performers had issued nationalist statements oregon condolences. The victims’ leader — quality and euphony website Mr. Indie — besides came successful for disapproval for failing to publically admit the calamity until Sunday morning. 

Friends, colleagues and concert-goers mourned the victims and demanded justness astatine a vigil extracurricular the gates of Bicentennial Park connected Sunday evening. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)

By Monday, AXE Ceremonia and artists scheduled to execute astatine the festival, including Charli XCX and Massive Attack, had released statements connected societal media lamenting the deaths of the photojournalists.

“We person been moving manus successful manus with the authorities and collaborating with each required requests,” AXE Ceremonia wrote connected Instagram connected Monday morning. “This unfortunate lawsuit profoundly saddens america arsenic a assemblage and obliges america each the much to reappraisal and fortify our civilian extortion and information protocols successful bid to forestall thing similar this from happening again.”

By Monday afternoon, the festival had deleted each anterior posts from its provender and replaced its illustration photograph with the colour black.

The relation of negligence successful the fatal incidental astatine Ceremonia

The circumstances surrounding the mishap astatine the euphony festival are not clear. An authoritative connection issued by the Miguel Hidalgo borough said precocious winds whipped done the area, which could person brought down the scissor lift that was sustaining the bear-shaped banner.

One scissor assistance shaper contacted by the quality tract Animal Político said its cognition manual specifically warns against draping banners oregon signs crossed the mechanism, due to the fact that it destabilizes the lift.

Additionally, Animal Político reported that the scissor assistance was being moved by a crane erstwhile the scissor mechanics — which tin measurement much than 5,000 pounds — collapsed. Other reports suggested that it was the crane itself that collapsed.

There are besides conflicting reports regarding the clip of decease of the victims. On Saturday evening, the festival shared a preliminary connection connected Instagram saying Giles and Hernández had died from their injuries successful the hospital, portion the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) wrote connected X astatine 11 p.m. that aforesaid time that the victims had arrived astatine Dr. Rubén Leñero General Hospital without captious signs.

President Sheinbaum connected Monday ordered that the Agricultural, Territorial and Urban Development Ministry (Sedatu) reappraisal the festival’s concessions pursuing the tragic incident. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)

Family members and colleagues request justness and harmless moving conditions

At Sunday’s vigil, colleagues of the fallen photojournalists and members of the quality media criticized Ceremonia for failing to supply a harmless abstraction for its attendees and workers, and called connected the festival manufacture to advocator for amended conditions for euphony journalists.

“May determination ne'er again beryllium an lawsuit without capable information protocols and that prioritizes wealth implicit the information of their attendees and workers,” they demanded. “This [festival] volition person a antithetic sanction adjacent year, but volition we spell again?” said different protester, according to the paper El Financiero.

Immediately pursuing the incident, Mexico City’s Civil Protection Ministry blamed Miguel Hidalgo borough officials, who responded that the ministry carried retired an authoritative information reappraisal of the festival grounds on with borough supervisors connected Friday, April 5.

According to authorities, the scissor assistance was raised connected Saturday aft the last information reappraisal was conducted.

On Monday, section legislators belonging to the ruling enactment Morena called for an probe of borough main Mauricio Tabe, a subordinate of the absorption National Action Party (PAN).

President Sheinbaum offered her condolences to the household members of the victims and ordered that the Agricultural, Territorial and Urban Development Ministry (Sedatu) reappraisal the festival’s permits and determine “whether nether these circumstances it is feasible to retreat [Ceremonia’s] concession” to usage the Bicentennial Park.

This is not the archetypal mishap to hap astatine an AXE Ceremonia festival organized by Grupo Eco.

In 2017, precocious winds blew implicit sections of the signifier prompting the cancellation of the 2nd time of the festival and forcing the institution to connection refunds.

Family members of the victims connected Sunday criticized the deficiency of clarity successful the ongoing investigation. The begetter of Berenice Giles told the quality transmission Nmás that his household had received nary accusation astir the circumstances of Berenice’s decease and were acrophobic the probe would beryllium mismanaged by the corresponding authorities.

With reports from El Universal, Animal Político, El País México, Infobae and El Financiero