'We pretty much had a mass casualty response,' says trauma surgeon working the day of Astroworld Tragedy

Trauma surgeon recalls working on the night of Astroworld tragedy

FOX 26 Reporter Tiffany Justice spoke with one trauma surgeon who was working on the night of the Astroworld tragedy.

HOUSTON - The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences released the official cause and manner of death of all 10 victims of the Astroworld Tragedy, whose ages range from 9 years old to 27, Thursday.

The news confirms the fears of many who have been following this story, the deaths were traumatic and caused by compression asphyxia.

"What it means, is that there is large pressure placed on the chest," said Dr. Bryan Cotton, MD, Trauma surgeon with UTHealth Houston/Memorial Hermann. "If you think about getting the wind knocked out of you; similar to that, but make it constant and never going away."

Cotton, a trauma surgeon who was working at Memorial Hermann the night of November 5, says compression asphyxia also causes pressure in the heart to build up.

"They end up becoming blue and purple and the vessels begin to pop in their face and eyes," said Cotton.

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He says the call came in as a mass casualty response, and it was all hands-on deck.

"We had our teams ready, we were calling in help and when we got them, most of them that I took care of were already beyond saving," said Cotton.

The family attorney for one of the 10 victims, Bharti Shahani, released a statement Thursday.

"The medical examiner’s findings confirm Bharti’s family’s worst fears, their beloved daughter’s last living moments were surely marked with suffering, panic, and terror," said Family Attorney, James Lassiter.

Attorney Tony Buzbee, who is representing the family of Axel Acosta, tells us the official cause was no surprise.

"We knew that he didn’t drink, he did not do drugs and obviously this medical examiner's office confirms that," said Buzbee.

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