Third woman dies from injuries sustained in stampede at GloRilla concert in Rochester
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The third woman severely injured when a large crowd rushed out of the Main Street Armory Sunday night has died, Rochester police announced Thursday.
All three women were trampled as the crowd was leaving the venue, at 900 E. Main St., following a GloRilla concert. Two women - Rhondesia Belton, 33, of Buffalo and Brandy Miller, 35, of Rochester - both died on Monday.
Police identified the third victim as Aisha Stephens, 35, of Syracuse. She died from her injuries on Wednesday, said Lt. Greg Bello of the Rochester Police Department.
Following the stampede on Sunday, seven additional people were treated at area hospitals for injuries that were not life-threatening.
Rochester Police Chief David Smith on Monday said the injuries appeared to be the result of a crowd pushing toward the exits Sunday night after they thought they heard gunshots.
While there was no evidence of gunfire, Smith on Monday said police are investigating several possible causes of the fatal surge, including “possibly crowd size, shots fired, pepper spray and other contributing factors.” He did not share further details on how the investigation progressed this week.
The incident occurred just after 11 p.m. Sunday, as people were exiting the Armory following a concert featuring rappers GloRilla and Finesse2tymes.
City officials on Wednesday shut down the venue indefinitely, by denying Armory’s entertainment license renewal, which has been posted at the venue. This means the Main Street Armory cannot host any public entertainment "pending a complete and thorough review of this matter,” Smith said Wednesday.
Rochester Mayor Malik Evans called the fatal stampede “totally unacceptable" and promised a thorough investigation into whether the venue's operators had the necessary safety measures in place for a large crowd.
GloRilla, whose 2022 song “F.N.F. (Let’s Go)” with Hitkidd was nominated for a Grammy for best rap performance, tweeted that she is “devastated and heartbroken" that women died after her Sunday show. She said she is "praying for their families and for a speedy recovery of everyone affected."
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Aisha Stephens dies from injuries sustained at GloRilla concert
