‘Devastated’: Taylor Swift Speaks Out About Fan’s Death Before Brazil Concert
Taylor Swift is mourning one of her fans after announcing her death before her show in Brazil on Friday.
“I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with a broken heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show. I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. There is very little information I have other than the fact that she was incredibly beautiful and way too young,” she wrote on Instagram after her Eras Tour concert in Rio de Janeiro.
She continued: “I’m not going to be able to talk about it from the stage because I feel overwhelmed with grief whenever I try to talk about it. I want to say now that I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to his family and friends. This is the last thing I thought would happen when we decided to do this tour in Brazil.
Swift did not provide additional details in her announcement, although Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported that a 23-year-old fan – Ana Clara Benevides – fainted and was treated at the Estádio Nilton Santos from Rio before being sent to a local hospital, where she later died.
The cause of death was cardiorespiratory arrest, according to the newspaper.
Swift’s show in Rio took place on a night when fans faced extreme temperatures amid a dangerous heat wave in Brazil.
Authorities reported that around 1,000 fans fainted at the event while some spectators vomited and suffered severe dehydration, according to Folha de S.Paulo.
The concert took place just days after Rio’s heat index — a combination of air temperature and humidity — reached 58.5 degrees Celsius (137 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday, the Associated noted Press.
This is the highest heat index ever recorded in the city.
Videos shared on social media on Friday showed fans ask for “water” on site as Swift, who noticed the chants from the stage, appeared to point out the audience to the staff.
“Sorry, it’s just really hot, so if anyone says they need water when it’s this hot, they really need it.” she says.
A clip shows Swift, performing a song, throw a bottle of water into the crowd while another shows Tree Paine, Swift’s publicist, fan recording as staff surrounded them.
HuffPost has contacted T4F Entretenimento – the company reportedly responsible for the Brazil tour – and the venue for comment.
