Wild scenes at Vivid Sydney as hundreds of terrified revellers are caught in ‘crowd crush’
Festivalgoers at the Vivid Sydney light show have been left terrified after being caught in a ‘crowd crush’ at Circular Quay.
Hundreds of people were left stranded near the overseas passenger terminal for up to 30 minutes after a drone show ended at 9.10pm on Saturday.
NSW Police officers were forced to remove metal barriers to allow crowds to leave the area as people pushed their way out of dead ends.
“I felt like I was going to die,” one participant told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It was terrifying. All it would have taken was one person pushing too hard or someone falling over for the situation to have catastrophic consequences.
‘There was no form of crowd control. It was shocking and clearly poorly managed.
Festivalgoers of the Vivid Sydney light show are terrified after being caught ‘crowd crushing’ at Circular Quay (pictured)
“People were rushing through the dining areas trying to find their way out of the crowd. One of the women who sat down to eat said that people who came to the restaurant were leaving because there were so many people out in the open.
‘It’s sad that businesses lost money when Vivid was designed to bring business to the CBD. We decided to keep pushing through the crowd until we got into a lane and could jump out, and then we went home.”
Another visitor, who posted photos of the chaos to X, expressed outrage at the “absolutely dangerous scenes at the Vivid festival.”
“After the 9:10 pm drone show ended, a crowd began crushing at the overseas passenger terminal,” they wrote.
“The police had to step in to remove barriers because of the severity of it.”
They said the ‘people management’ at the popular event was ‘very poor’.
“For example, people who flowed into dead ends, such as the food trucks at the entrance to the passenger terminal, were told to turn back,” they said.
A visitor who posted photos of the chaos on X (photo) expressed his outrage on Saturday evening at the ‘absolutely dangerous scenes at the Vivid festival’
A crowd is shown gathering on Circular Quay, near George Street
Another woman said staff failed to direct the crowd from the chaos.
“We waited for an hour standing to see ten mediocre drone formations and a bunch of advertisements. And it took us 30 minutes to leave the place,” she said.
‘We had to stand on the turf to avoid the busy part. It is half a meter high, but we have children and elderly people.
‘In the crowd there are babies less than a year old, crying. Even as an adult, I felt pushed. Very poorly organised. Do not recommend. I hope no one gets a break
At 8.30pm, Vivid Sydney posted an update on
“The show will also be streamed live at Tumbalong Park in Darling Harbor on the big screen and on the Vivid Sydney Facebook page,” the update said.
More to come.
At 8:30 p.m., Vivid Sydney posted an update on X warning that there were large crowds at the event due to the drone show and to avoid the area.
