O2 Brixton: woman, 21, is still in a critical condition in hospital three months after crush at Asake gig

A young woman is still fighting for her life months after the deadly crush as the O2 Academy in Brixton.

The gig by Afro-pop singer Asake, had to be abandoned part-way through due to the chaos outside the building. One reveller and a member of security staff were killed at the music venue in Brixton, south London, when a huge crowd tried to force their way in to the show.

A number of people suffered serious injuries and were treated at the scene by staff, police officers and paramedics. Eight people in total were taken to hospital with injuries following the tragic scenes in December.

Mother-of-two Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, a nursing graduate from Newham, east London, died in hospital the next morning, while Gaby Hutchinson, 23, a member of the door staff, passed away two days later.

A 21-year-old woman who was also rushed to hospital remains in a critical condition, the Met Police said on Friday (17 March).

Police ask for footage of the crush

Detectives investigating what led up to the crowd surge still want to see any photos or video footage from the night of 15 December. Since the tragic crowd surge, the popular venue has been closed while a prove is carried out.

Lambeth Council suspended the Academy’s licence and ruled it should not reopen until April 16, when it’s future will be reconsidered. Academy Music Group (AMG), which runs the venue, said the it would stay closed while several investigations continued.

Scotland Yard today appealed for any witnesses to come forward. Detective Superintendent Dave Kennett, from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, added: “If you were there when this tragic incident happened, if you have footage or pictures of the evening, please come forward and speak to my team.

“We need your help to establish what happened so that we can provide answers to the families and loved ones of those who were so seriously, or fatally injured. We know there were thousands of people there and that many will have seen what happened. If you were there please don’t ignore this plea – imagine the families who are struggling to come to terms with their loss and do the right thing, share what you saw with my team who are waiting to her from you.

He continued: “We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has come forward so far, but we still need more perspectives of the events that took place in the crowd that night. We are carrying out a comprehensive analysis of any available CCTV footage in and around the scene, but, if you have footage filmed that night we’d very much like to see it.

“Footage shared on social media immediately after the incident showed dozens of people recording what was happening - we know that there is a vast amount of material on people’s phones, sharing that material with us would take just minutes of your time. Two people have died and a third is still very seriously injured and we owe it to them, their families and anyone else affected by this incident to leave no stone unturned.”

To speak to the Operation Wickmar investigation team direct call 0207 321 9425 or to remain anonymous contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.