Eight killed, 25 hurt at Danish rock festival

ROSKILDE, Denmark - The Pearl Jam concert was raging along as 50,000 young fans danced and sang - ''things were really great,'' one concertgoer said.

But then fans caught up in the enthusiasm began pushing forward, leaving some up front screaming and climbing on top of each other to get air. By the time Friday night's crush at the Roskilde festival subsided, eight fans were trampled to death and 25 more injured.

On Saturday, only hours later, the main stage here was starkly silent as knots of concertgoers gazed at flowers covering the muddy ground where their fellow fans died.

''This is so painful. I think we are all waiting for someone to wake us and say it was just a horrible nightmare,'' Pearl Jam said in a statement. ''There are absolutely no words to express our anguish in regard to the parents and loved ones of those precious lives that were lost.''

The popular Seattle-based band canceled its July 2 and July 3 concerts, according to its official Web site. The shows had been scheduled for Werchter, Belgium and Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

The tragedy began at about midnight Friday in this town 25 miles west of Copenhagen. As Pearl Jam played, fans began pushing forward to get closer to the action.

''People were laughing while pushing each other around,'' said Colleen Gould, 26, of Australia. ''I just wanted to try and get a photo. Then I got caught in it.''

The members of Pearl Jam shouted to the crowd of about 50,000 to move back, and halted the performance when that didn't happen.

''People didn't understand,'' said Gould, who escaped the tightening pack by swinging her elbows. ''They thought they were cheering up the crowd.''

The grounds at the annual festival, which this year attracted about 100,000 fans, were muddy from an all-day rain. The victims, all men, slipped or fell in front of the stage and were trampled to death.

Victims included a 23-year-old Dutch man; a 26-year-old German; three Swedes aged 20, 21 and 22; and three Danes, two of whom were 17 and 22, respectively. Police withheld other identification details pending notification of relatives.

''Once you were down in the mud you couldn't get up. It was impossible,'' said Thomas Daun, 18, of Sweden, who was up front Friday night.

On Saturday, Daun stood with his friends in the silent crowd before the cordoned-off scene that was littered with plastic cups, paper and bottles. As afternoon turned to evening under heavy clouds and a gray sky, the Protestant bishop of Roskilde, Jan Lindhardt, prayed and led a commemorative moment of silence at the stage. The ceremony was broadcast live by Danish public radio.

''It was a terrible and tragic accident,'' Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen said in an earlier televised interview. ''It is very difficult to put words on the fact that so many young people have lost their lives in such sinister circumstances.''

First held in 1971, Roskilde was inspired by the 1969 Woodstock Festival in upstate New York. The event, which in recent years has appeared on MTV, attracts visitors from most of northern Europe.

In front of Roskilde' performing stages are barriers intended to prevent spectators up front from being pressed by those behind. Dozens of security staff also were positioned to help squeezed spectators escape, if necessary.

It was unclear what went wrong.

''The Roskilde Festival (organizers) always have said that they wanted it to be the safest festival, and that is very visible,'' said Carsten Iversen, who has supervised concert security in recent years.

Meanwhile, the 30th edition of the festival continued Saturday on the festival's other stages. Event spokesman Leif Skov said it went on because ''life is stronger than death.''

But British bands Oasis and the Pet Shop Boys pulled out of their scheduled Saturday night appearances. ''Oasis and Pet Shop Boys felt that out of respect for those who have died and their families, it is inappropriate to go ahead with tonight's performances,'' the two groups said in a joint statement.

''The festival spirit has gone,'' said Edwin Walter, 16, of Sweden. ''We'll stay because going home would mean turning our back to what has happened.''

Friday's tragedy was the latest trampling at a concert. Last year, 52 people were killed after a rock concert in Minsk, Belarus, when a hailstorm hit and hundreds of fans rushed for a nearby subway station. In 1979, 11 people were trampled to death in Cincinnati, Ohio as they rushed for choice seats before the start of a concert by the British rock band The Who.

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On the Net:

Pearl Jam site: http://www.sonymusic.com/artists/PearlJam