Yorkshire woman suffers fractured knee after crowd falls on her at Boardmasters

Jade Brooks, 23, was attending Boardmasters festival on Friday in Newquay, Cornwall, when the crowd crush occurred, leading to some people sustaining injuries.

Ms Brooks said she arrived at The Point stage with her brother, 17, and cousin, 19, an hour before DJ Sammy Virji’s set was due to start and “more and more people were flooding in".

“We then stood up to get a good view of the stage when more and more people were flocking in,” she said.

“This is where we were getting pushed into by people trying to get to the front, which caused us to be packed in like sardines.

“I felt enclosed and wanted to get out but everywhere you turned there was no way to get out.

“The crowd then pushed back and caused everyone to fall with me being the bottom person and I had about 10 people fall onto my legs.

“I was screaming ‘my legs’ when I heard the crunch as someone landed on it.”

Sammy Virji’s set was ultimately cancelled and, in an Instagram post, he said he was “gutted” but “safety should always come first”.

Ms Brooks claims that security told her to go to the welfare tent where “hundreds of people were waiting” before the medical team felt her leg.

Ms Brooks said they told her she would be “okay” and that they could attend to her “in a few hours once they got down people more important”.

The following morning, Ms Brooks, a dancer who also works in hospitality, said she “woke up in agony”. She saw her leg had swollen to twice its usual size and she was unable to put any weight on it.

An x-ray revealed she had a fracture in her knee, meaning that she will have to spend the rest of her family holiday in Cornwall in a brace with crutches.

“It has ruined my holiday with my family, as I can’t do anything at all now,” she said.

Boardmasters festival was approached for comment. On social media, they said: “Following a crowd collapse at The Point last night seven attendees were transferred to hospital nearby for precautionary examination after presenting to our medical team. They have been treated for minor injuries and have all since been discharged.”