07 May 2023 , 21:53
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People attending the Eurovision welcome party had to be helped out of the venue due to overcrowding and organisation issues.
Thousands poured into St George's Plateau in Liverpool this evening for the National Lottery's Big Eurovision Welcome.
The event featured a number of performances from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Lightning Seeds and Atomic Kitten and many more.
However, it was plagued by overcrowding and organisations issues which sparked concerns for people in attendance, the Liverpool ECHO reports.
Just outside the front of St George's Hall, thousands flooded towards the venue leading to criticism over how security staff were managing the situation.
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People had to be dragged over barriers at the event in Liverpool to avoid injury (Liverpool Echo)Some people were seen being carried over barriers to get out of the concert area after becoming distressed while an announcer on stage said the concert would not be able to begin until people had spread out and stated the organisers did not expect the event to be as busy as it is.
Some said BBC camera staff helped out more than security, with another calling the situation "atrocious".
On woman took to Twitter to say: "Eurovision National Lottery sort yourselves out! major health and safety issue going on. ignored several times then puts a man on the stage telling people to come even closer."
She added BBC camera operators had done more to help the situation than the security on site.
M Farrell was struggling to get into the gig from the London Road area.
Thousands of people flocked to the Liverpool venue (Liverpool Echo)They said: "Anyone know what's happening at the London Road gate for the Eurovision concert. Busy stuck in a crowd that is about 800 people deep outside the entrance."
Another person, Phil Symo, walked out of the concert because of the issues.
He said: "I hope they make a better effort with Eurovision because the organisation for this was an absolute s*** show. All the crowds on one side. Dangerous."
Another concert-goer had to leave after suffering a panic attack.
"It's shockingly organised, you can't get from one side to the other," she added.
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Host Joel Dommett had to ask fans to spread out during the show (Liverpool Echo)Eyewitnesses at the scene saw people having to be helped out of the event space, with person saying they saw around 40 people being helped over the barriers.
Presenter Joel Dommett was then heard encouraging people in the crowd to spread out.
A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said: “Stewards assisted a few people who were uncomfortable in the crowd. The event started on time and is getting a great reception from the audience.”
"We continue to monitor the situation throughout the show to make sure people are comfortable."