Dozens of Boston concertgoers taken to hospitals

BOSTON -- Many people who attended an electronic dance music show featuring Swedish disc jockey Avicii at the TD Garden arena on Wednesday showed up intoxicated and several were brought to hospitals, authorities said.

TD Garden spokeswoman Tricia McCorkle said, "There were a number of transports due to medical issues" at the concert.

CBS Boston cites the Emergency Medical Service as saying the number of people taken to hospitals was 36 and that 50 more were treated inside the arena.

EMS Deputy Superintendent Mike Bosse told the Boston Herald he contacted the Boston Police Licensing Division, which cited the TD Garden for allowing many intoxicated fans to enter.

Jacqueline Peterson, a spokeswoman for concert promoter Live Nation, said early reports indicate a majority of those taken to hospitals "were people outside the venue who were too impaired to be allowed inside" for the concert. They were taken for medical evaluation and assistance as a precaution, she said in a statement early Thursday.

But CBS Boston says witnesses, many in their teens and early 20s, described seeing people doing drugs, drinking too much, and some on the floor, passed out.

"There was one kid, it took four cops to take him down. He was on something," one concertgoer told the station.

Another concertgoer said she saw several people in need of medical attention on the ground in both the concession and seating areas.

After the show, Avicci, whose real name is Tim Bergling, tweeted, "Just hearing the awful news about tonight, its a terrible thing, i really hope everyone is ok. My thoughts go to those affected and their families."

Two people died over the weekend at a Las Vegas music festival attended by Avicii, one of the biggest names in electronic dance music. Authorities said Monday it will take several weeks to determine what caused the deaths of the Electric Daisy Carnival fans.

Police said nearly 800 people were treated for medical conditions and 25 were hospitalized during the three-night electronic music festival, which organizers said drew about 400,000 people at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Festival organizers told police that 134,000 fans attended Friday, Saturday and Sunday night shows featuring pulsing lights, Ferris wheels, seven stages of music and DJs including Avicii, Diplo, Afrojack and Tiesto.