AC/DC Salt Palace
Crowd Crush Incident
A structured research brief documenting verified facts, source material, safety-design failures, and legal aftermath of the fatal crowd crush at Salt Palace Acord Arena, Salt Lake City — January 18, 1991.
Explore the Research →By the Numbers
Key Data Points
What We Know
Solidly Verified Facts
The following details are confirmed by official police reporting, the Salt Lake County investigation summary, and contemporaneous Deseret News coverage. Items with caveats reflect where official wording differs from secondary accounts.
Evidence Base
Sources by Category
All source material organised into five categories. Official and government sources are weighted most heavily for verified claims.
Official / Government
Police statements from Lt. Mark Zelig and Lt. Marty Vuyk, county investigation summary, and the Salt Lake City ordinance text prohibiting general-admission standing.
Venue / Promoter / Security
How festival seating became policy in 1988, security supervisor accounts from Scott Carter and Russ Boyd of Contemporary Services Corp., and post-incident responses.
Medical / Casualty
Named casualty details from Deseret News Jan. 20–22 coverage and state medical examiner's finding of compression asphyxiation. LA Times confirms autopsy findings.
National / Industry
LA Times feature "Concert of Death" provides wider industry context, quotes Spectacor's Peter Luukko, and notes other cities restricting festival seating after the deaths.
Lawsuits / Settlement
Bruce Child's lawsuit alleged "willful, malicious conduct" against the band, promoter (J.C. McNeil / United Concerts Inc.), Spectacor Management Group, and Contemporary Services Corp. Settled December 1992.
| Source | Type | Key Content | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Police probe 1 death, injuries at Salt Palace rock concert" — Deseret News, Jan. 20 1991 | Official | Immediate casualty picture, crowd compression, heat, early police accounts | Open → |
| "Did festival seating lead to 3 deaths?" — Deseret News, Jan. 22 1991 | Media | Scene mechanics, 12 cone barriers, security placement, squirt bottles | Open → |
| "S.L. County Finds No Negligence in Concert Deaths" — Deseret News, Feb. 9 1991 | Official | Attendance numbers, 26:05 delay, radio failures, official investigation conclusion | Open → |
| "Festival Seating Became Official in '88" — Deseret News, Jan. 26 1991 | Venue | Policy history since spring 1988, Tucson cone model, prior injury statistics | Open → |
| "Crowd Expert Blames 3 Deaths on AC/DC Fans" — Deseret News, Jan. 24 1991 | Venue | Barricade supervisors' accounts, no shutdown procedure, no power-cut authority | Open → |
| "'82 Ordinance Did Away With Festival Seating" — Deseret News, Feb. 27 1991 | Official | Confirms ordinance, confirms Salt Palace never applied for exemption | Open → |
| "Concert of Death: Cities Rethink Festival Seating" — LA Times, Feb. 3 1991 | Media | National industry context, other cities' responses, Spectacor defence | Open → |
| Father sues AC/DC — Deseret News, Feb. 6 1991 | Legal | Named defendants, $8 million claim, "willful, malicious conduct" allegation | Open → |
| Settlement report — Deseret News, Apr. 22 1993 | Legal | Out-of-court settlement, county share under $2M, festival seating ban confirmed | Open → |
| Salt Lake City Code §5.74.210 | Official | Codified ordinance prohibiting GA standing in venues over 2,000 capacity | Open → |
Operational Analysis
Safety-Design Details for Case File
These operational details are the most analytically useful for understanding how and why the incident occurred.
Further Reading
Articles & Resources
A curated collection of articles, retrospectives, and investigative pieces covering the incident and its aftermath. All links open in a new tab.
"The band had barely launched into its opening song – 'Thunderstruck,' the hit single from 1990's The Razor's Edge – when a sea of fans rushed towards the stage..."
Read Article →"AC/DC played a concert at Salt Lake City on January 18, 1991 and of the 13,294 fans who came to see the legendary rock band, not one could have foreseen that the night will end up in three deaths."
Read Article →"Many memorable moments accompanied amazing AC/DC concerts throughout the years but, one show at Salt Lake City will forever be remembered as tragic."
Read Article →"They stood in line overnight to buy the $18 tickets, determined to be there if it was the last thing they ever did. Tragically, for three teenagers, it was."
Read Article →"The families of three teenagers killed during a Jan. 18, 1991, AC/DC concert at the Salt Palace have settled out of court..."
Read Article →"More than 13,000 fans were packed into the Salt Palace that Jan. 18 night... 14-year-old Curtis Child had managed to elbow his way into a choice spot near the front..."
Read Article →Video
News Report & Retrospective
News coverage and retrospective footage relating to the Salt Lake City incident.
AC/DC Salt Lake City Incident — News Report / Retrospective
More Sources
Additional Articles
"When AC/DC takes the stage Thursday evening, most everyone agrees, there's little chance of a repeat of the tragedy..."
Read Article →"Bruce Child of Logan, Utah, father of one of the three teenagers crushed to death... has filed an $8 million suit against the band, the arena's managers and security firm..."
Read Article →Further Resources
