Pop singer Halsey’s concert in Maryland was canceled Wednesday night as severe storms rolled through the area, flooded the venue and soaked fans waiting in the stands.
The star’s concert was initially delayed at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, an outdoor venue with partially covered seating, due to the weather, slated to resume at 9:30 p.m.
By 10 p.m., the venue tweeted the Halsey show was canceled “due to weather-related technical difficulties.”
Columbia was under tornado and flash flood warnings Wednesday evening as thunderstorms rumbled through the region, and swathes of fans already at the venue were left drenched.
Some fans were seen in rain ponchos hiding out in a bathroom during tornado warnings, others soaked by rain pouring through the ceiling near the stage, and those sitting in the seats inundated by water gushing over the stairs and ground.
Videos posted on social media show rain falling through the ceiling over the packed crowd waiting for the show, water overflowing into the concert pit, and the pathway to the venue swamped with fast-running water.
Some crowd members chanted “rain or shine” demanding the show go on, referencing an earlier tweet from the venue, which said: “just a heads up that the show is still happening rain or shine!”
Halsey said in a statement around 11:30 p.m. she is “beyond disappointed with the way the venue handled everything tonight.”
When the show was canceled, she tweeted, “Maryland I don’t even know what to say,” adding, “right now I’m heartbroken and panicked and I just want to know when/that you all get home safely.”
She explained she couldn’t have performed because it would have been unsafe for attendees if “people rushed the stage during or after the storm.”
“A lot of things were out of my control tonight but I promise everything I COULD choose, I chose your safety,” the 27-year-old said.
NBC News has reached out to the venue for comment on how the cancellation was handled.
