Festivalgoer dies in freak accident during Salt Lake City’s Redwest Music Festival evacuation
One person has died during a festival evacuation in Salt Lake City.
The 23-year-old, Ava Ahlander, was struck by a piece of windblown debris from a nearby construction site while she sought shelter in her parked car during a period of extreme weather. Unfortunately, a scaffolding board struck the car. She was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries and later perished.
Ahlander’s family shared that she had flown in from Seattle to see Post Malone at Redwest. However, his headlining set was cancelled, as well as sets by Ty Myers, Treaty Oak Revival, Ole 60, Sons Of Habit, and Koe Wetzel.
The evacuation was ordered at 5:15pm on Saturday, October 11th. Over two hours later, the organisers shared an optimistic message suggesting that the performances might continue. However, at 9:40pm, everything was officially cancelled. The main acts left to play were not rescheduled.
While Saturday festivalgoers weren’t permitted a refund, they were allowed to attend the Sunday of the festival free of charge. A University of Utah football game was delayed on the same evening, but it managed to go ahead later. As such, some attendees of the festival are threatening to sue in a class-action lawsuit over the poor communication and lack of refund.
This isn’t the first time a festival has had to pause mid-way due to extreme weather. Earlier this year, Bonnaroo festival was forced to cancel only a day into the programmed schedule. The event has since confirmed that it will return in 2026 with some major changes.
Additionally, in July, American rock outfit Steve Miller Band cancelled their summer tour due to fears of extreme weather in North America. In an open letter to fans, Miller wrote: “You make music with your instincts. You live life by your instincts. Always trust your instincts…” He then confirmed, “The Steve Miller Band has cancelled all of our upcoming tour dates.”
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