PASADENA, Calif. (KABC) – The Cruel World Music Festival had to be evacuated suddenly due to a thunderstorm that struck the Rose Bowl by surprise on Saturday night.
The National Weather Service says it is monitoring the storm system moving between Mt. Olive and Pasadena and Monrovia.
“This storm can bring strong gusty winds, heavy downpours, lightning and small hail,” the NWS said in a tweet.
The music festival has been postponed and visitors have been instructed to evacuate via the emergency exits as soon as possible.
“The festival has been postponed until further notice. Please clear the festival site immediately. Use the nearest emergency exits. Stay tuned for updates,” the festival tweeted, before deleting the post.
The festival has since released a tweet urging festival-goers to leave the concert site and go to vehicles or other restricted areas for safety reasons.
“Due to the storm, please leave the event site and, for safety reasons, go to your vehicles or protected areas outside the event site. Stay tuned for updates,” they tweeted.
A storm broke out during Iggy Pop’s performance. Many concert-goers were stunned because they had to miss Siouxsie Sioux’s upcoming performance due to the evacuation.
“It’s disappointing but understandable because I actually saw lightning,” said Ivonne Espinoza, who attended the concert.
Michelle Gee from Pasadena said she had been looking forward to the concert for months.
“I’ve been planning this for months. And it’s okay. But it worked. I’m fine,” Gee said.
It is currently unclear whether the rest of the concert will be postponed.
The video also showed rain falling in Monrovia due to the storm. The Monrovia Days Festival also had to be canceled due to the weather.
This is breaking news. Check back later for more details.