Latest Entertainment News (Townflex) – A sad incident occurred at Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concert in Rio de Janeiro on Friday night, November 17, 2023, as a 23-year-old Taylor Swift fan named Ana Clara Benevides Machado passed away.
People, including fans and politicians, have been expressing their feelings about this unfortunate event.
The cause of Ana Clara Benevides Machado’s death hasn’t been announced. Fans complained that they weren’t allowed to bring water into Nilton Santos Olympic Stadium, even though it was very hot.
Taylor Swift shared a heartfelt note on social media, expressing her sadness and mentioning that she didn’t have much information about Ana Clara, except that she was young and beautiful.
“There’s very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young,” the singer who said she had a “shattered heart” wrote of the young woman.
Related: Jimmy Kimmel to host the Oscars for the fourth time
According to Time4Fun, the event organizer, in a statement shared on Instagram, paramedics helped Ana Clara after she felt unwell. She was taken to a first-aid center and then to a hospital, where she passed away an hour later.
In response to the incident, a group started an online petition for a “Benevides Law” to make water mandatory at events. The petition quickly got over 150,000 signatures, and authorities decided to provide free water at future concerts.
Concert-goers said they were not allowed to bring water bottles into the stadium even though Rio and most of Brazil have had record-breaking temperatures this week amid a dangerous and lasting heat wave. The daytime high in Rio on Friday was 39.1 degrees Celsius (102.4 degrees Fahrenheit), but it felt much hotter.
Elizabeth Morin, 26, who recently moved to Rio from Los Angeles, described “sauna-like” conditions inside the stadium.
“It was extremely hot. My hair got so wet from sweat as soon as I came in,” she said. “There was a point at which I had to check my breathing to make sure I wasn’t going to pass out.”
Morin said she drank plenty of water but saw “a good amount of people looking distressed” and others “yelling for water.” She said she was able to get water from the sidelines of the area she was standing in, but that water was a lot harder to access from other parts of the stadium, “especially if you were concerned about losing your specific position.”
Related News: Cassie has accused ex Diddy of rape in a new lawsuit
Ana Clara’s friend, Daniele Menin, who was with her at the concert, said she passed out during Taylor Swift’s second song, “Cruel Summer.” Daniele mentioned that they had always wanted to see Taylor Swift in Brazil and found a way to get tickets despite the high cost.
“We always said that when (Taylor Swift) came to Brazil we would find a way to go. The ticket was very expensive, but we still found a way”, Menin told G1.
While authorities are investigating the circumstances of the death, Paes wrote, the municipality will demand on Saturday that the show’s production company provide new water distribution points, more brigades and ambulances, and advance entrance to the show by one hour.
Swift has two more shows scheduled in Rio, one on Saturday and one on Sunday.
“I’m not going to be able to speak about this from the stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it,” she wrote. “I want to say now that I feel this loss deeply, and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends.”
