SO TRAGIC... STUDENT AGED 20 KILLED IN QUEUE CRUSH OUTSIDE PACKED NIGHTCLUB
A STUDENT was crushed to death beneath a barrier as she queued outside a nightclub while out with friends.
Olivia Burt, 20, who was in her first year at Durham University, was waiting outside the city’s Missoula nightspot when the barrier collapsed under the weight of people pushing to get in.
She suffered serious head injuries and, despite the efforts of paramedics, was pronounced dead at the scene at around midnight on Wednesday.
Her devastated parents Paula, 56, and Nigel, 58, yesterday left their £600,000 home in Milford on Sea, Hampshire, to travel north to formally identify their daughter.
Yesterday a fellow undergraduate blamed “a group of boys” who started to push, causing those near the front of the queue to fall over in the crush. The victim became trapped under the barrier, made of glass and metal.
Olivia, former head girl at Bournemouth School for Girls and a keen sailor who had represented Britain at the European Championships, was studying natural sciences.
Police have launched an investigation alongside the Health and Safety Executive.
A witness said: “I was standing in the queue to get into the club. People were barging to get in. The queue went all the way round the fence outside the club and as they pushed to get in it caused the fence to fall over. The girl was trapped under the fence and crushed.
“There was a fair bit of panic. One of the security men at the nightclub ran towards her and took his shirt off to stem the bleeding from her head.
“She had lost consciousness and he started giving CPR and was helped by other doormen until the ambulance arrived.”
It is understood the club was full with around 600 revellers and those outside were having to wait for people to leave before they could be allowed in the venue.
Another witness, named only as Rosie, told Durham’s student newspaper The Tab that she used her jumper to cushion the victim’s head.
She said: “We were in the queue round the back of Missoula waiting to go in and a large group of boys come to get in the queue and for some reason decided they were going to go in faster if we started to push.
“This was around 11.55am and the barrier toppled over along with all the people and I, along with others, got pushed over. I looked round and there was this girl on the floor with blood pouring out of her head. I ran over to try to help other people look after her and there was blood everywhere.
“I got them to cushion her head with my jumper and then the only bouncer present dragged me away.”
The student added that there was just one bouncer on duty who seemed to have “no idea what to do”.
Owen Adams, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the university, said yesterday: “The death of one of our students in Durham city last night has shocked and saddened the whole university community.
“We are deeply thankful to members of the ambulance service and police officers for the professional and compassionate manner in which they have gone about their work.
“We have been in touch with the student’s family and we are continuing to offer support to students and staff who may have been affected by this incident.”
Professor David Held, Master of University College, where Olivia was studying, said: “Staff and students feel her loss acutely.
“Olivia came to Durham last autumn with glowing references from her school where she was regarded in the highest possible terms.
“She had an outstanding academic record and was an exceptional sportswoman. She was part of the British Sailing team in the European Championships. Olivia sailed for more than a decade, quickly finding her place in the university team. She became very active both in college life and the wider university.
“Those students close to her have lost a wonderful friend.
“The College has lost a bright and outstandingly able student. It is hard to come to terms with her loss and we will miss her greatly.”
Durham Police said: “We were alerted to an incident in Walkergate, Durham, at 11.53pm on Wednesday night. A young woman had suffered serious injuries in the vicinity of the Missoula nightclub.
“A post-mortem examination is due to be carried out to try to establish a cause of death. A formal identification of the deceased is yet to take place.”
Phoenix Security, which provides security for the nightclub, declined to comment on the incident.
Missoula, formerly known as the Slug and Lettuce pub, opened in September 2016 following a £385,000 investment.
A spokesman for pub company Stonegate, which owns the premises, said: “We are unable to comment at the moment due to it being the subject of a police investigation.”