A luxurious nightclub filled with palm fronds and politicians. A festival stage surrounded by screams. In this episode, we revisit two events separated by 80 years - but united by a chilling truth: when crowds gather, things can turn deadly fast.
We start with the Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942, a catastrophe that claimed 492 lives in just ten minutes. Locked exits. Flammable ceilings. One of Hollywood’s biggest cowboy stars. Then, we jump forward to Astroworld 2021 - another event where the warnings were there, but not the will to stop the show.
We explore:
It’s about more than panic. It’s about power, perception, and the illusion of safety.
Attribution Notes:
*** Follow This, Again on Instagram: @thisagainshow ***
This, Again is written, produced, and hosted by Mallory Faust.
Sources:
Cocoanut Grove Fire (1942)
Esposito, John C. *Fire in the Grove: The Cocoanut Grove Tragedy and Its Aftermath*. New York: Da Capo Press, 2006.
United States Fire Administration. *Cocoanut Grove Fire*. U.S. Fire Administration/Technical Report Series. Emmitsburg, MD: FEMA, 1983. https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/pdf/efop/efo47056.pdf.
"Cocoanut Grove Fire." *Boston Fire Historical Society*. Accessed September 2025. https://bostonfirehistory.org/the-story-of-the-cocoanut-grove-fire/.
"The Cocoanut Grove Fire, 1942." *Massachusetts Moments / Mass.gov*. Accessed September 2025. https://www.mass.gov/guides/the-cocoanut-grove-fire.
Astroworld Tragedy (2021–2024)
Queen, Jack, and Mike Spector. "Rapper Travis Scott Avoids Charges over Texas Crowd Crush." *Reuters*, June 29, 2023. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/rapper-travis-scott-faces-possible-criminal-charges-texas-crowd-crush-2023-06-29.
Serrano, Alejandro. "Travis Scott Won’t Be Indicted for Astroworld Concert Tragedy, Grand Jury Decides." *The Texas Tribune*, June 29, 2023. https://www.texastribune.org/2023/06/29/harris-county-astroworld-travis-scott/.
Doyle, Céilí, Matt Sledge, and Angelica Perez. "New Evidence Emerges in Travis Scott Astroworld Tragedy." *Houston Landing / The Texas Tribune*, July 28, 2023. https://www.texastribune.org/2023/07/28/travis-scott-houston-concert-police-report/.
"Houston Police Release Full Investigative Report into 2021 Astroworld Tragedy." *Pitchfork*, July 28, 2023. https://pitchfork.com/news/houston-police-release-full-investigative-report-into-2021-astroworld-tragedy/.
"9 of 10 Wrongful Death Suits over Astroworld Concert Crowd Surge Have Been Settled, Lawyer Says." *AP News*, May 8, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/astroworld-concert-wrongful-deaths-settlement-0a31947b59bc86f5423bf9ec05272557.
"Remaining Wrongful Death Lawsuit Filed after Deadly Astroworld Concert Has Been Settled, Lawyer Says." *AP News*, May 23, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/1cda1e925527de38ad2a37e71ebd99af.
"Judge Declines to Dismiss Lawsuits Filed against Rapper Travis Scott over Deadly Astroworld Concert." *AP News*, April 24, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/travis-scott-astroworld-concert-lawsuits-deaths-36b504c7d03483e7960fd31636cccecc.
"Criminal Probe Opened into Stampede at Rap Concert in Texas." *Reuters*, November 6, 2021. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/least-8-dead-many-injured-texas-music-festival-media-2021-11-06/.
"Travis Scott Headlines Rolling Loud California 2023." *Pitchfork*, January 18, 2023. https://pitchfork.com/news/travis-scott-headlines-rolling-loud-california-2023-lineup/.
"Astroworld Video Shows Fan Climb on Camera Platform Begging to Stop the Show." *The Independent*, November 7, 2021. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/astroworld-video-travis-scott-latest-b1953263.html.
"ICU Nurse Recounts Horror at Astroworld Festival." *KHOU News*, November 8, 2021. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/icu-nurse-astroworld-fest/285-b0f1a92f-d7ea-4aa1-b6cb-dac96227cba0.
Psychology & Disaster Behavior
"Normalcy Bias: The Brain’s Inability to Process the Unthinkable." *Yale School of Medicine*. Accessed September 2025. https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/normalcy-bias/.
"Normalcy Bias." *The Decision Lab*. Accessed September 2025. https://thedecisionlab.com/biases/normalcy-bias.
Gurton, Amanda. "Cognitive Biases Within Decision Making During Fire Evacuations." *ResearchGate*, 2018. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323556184_Cognitive_Biases_Within_Decision_Making_During_Fire_Evacuations.
Historical Echoes – The Who, Station, Hillsborough
"Crowd Surge at a Who Concert Killed 11 People in 1979." *Washington Post*, November 9, 2021. https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2021/11/09/the-who-concert-tragedy/.
"45 Years Later: Reflecting on Deadly Crowd Crush at The Who Concert." *Fox19*, December 3, 2024. https://www.fox19.com/2024/12/03/45-years-later-reflecting-cincinnatis-deadly-crowd-crush-stampede/.
"Eleven People Killed in a Stampede outside Who Concert in Cincinnati, Ohio." *History.com*. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/december-3/eleven-people-killed-in-a-stampede-outside-who-concert-in-cincinnati-ohio.
National Institute of Standards and Technology. *Report of the Technical Investigation of The Station Nightclub Fire*. NIST NCSTAR 2. Gaithersburg, MD: U.S. Department of Commerce, 2005. https://www.nist.gov/publications/report-technical-investigation-station-nightclub-fire-nist-ncstar-2-volume-1.
"The Station Nightclub Fire." *Encyclopaedia Britannica*. Accessed 2025. https://www.britannica.com/event/The-Station-nightclub-fire.
"Injuries Sustained and Lessons Learned from the 2003 Station Nightclub Fire." *ASPR TRACIE*, January 9, 2025. https://files.asprtracie.hhs.gov/documents/injuries-sustained-and-lessons-learned-from-the-2003-station-nightclub-fire.pdf.
Hillsborough Independent Panel. *The Report of the Hillsborough Independent Panel*. London: HMSO, 2012. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/229019/0581.pdf.
