Axel Acosta, 21, Identified as Astroworld Victim by His Family: 'Young Man with a Vibrant Future'
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A promising college student named Axel Acosta has been identified as one of the eight victims of the mass casualty incident that took place Friday night at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival in Houston, Texas.
Axel's father, Edgar Acosta, confirmed to ABC 13 that his 21-year-old son was the unidentified concert attendee who had been recovered from Memorial Hermann Hospital after the tragedy.
Edgar told the outlet that filing a missing persons report on his son with authorities proved to be a challenge as Axel was a Washington resident. Police have not yet released a cause of death.
Other identified victims include: 14-year-old John Hilgert, 16-year-old Brianna Rodriguez, 21-year-olds Franco Patiño and Jacob Jurinek, 23-year-old Rudy Peña, 27-year-old Mirza Danish Baig and another 23-year-old, who has not been identified publicly.
RELATED: Everything We Know So Far About the 8 People Killed at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival
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Speaking with ABC 13, Axel's aunt, Cynthia Acosta, said that her nephew attended the Astroworld Festival on his own after traveling by himself from Washington to see Scott, 30, perform alongside other entertainers.
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"It was his first time going to an event like that," Cynthia explained to the outlet.
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Western Washington University, where Axel was studying computer science, released a statement shortly after his death was confirmed, ABC 13 reported.
"By all accounts, Axel was a young man with a vibrant future. We are sending our condolences to his family on this very sad day," Vice President of Enrollment and Student Services Melynda Huskey said, per the outlet.
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On Facebook, Axel's brother, Joel Acosta, shared a tribute to his late brother after he was confirmed dead.
"I want to thank everyone on Facebook and Instagram who helped spread the word about my brother Axel Acosta. He has finally been found and funeral arrangements have been made," he wrote beside a collage photograph. "Again, I appreciate the help and please help me pray for him. He is in a better place with no suffering and I hope he knows that we love him."
Joel added: "Thank you to everyone who sent me information on my brother. He had been missing at AstroWorld in Houston. He has been found and funeral arrangements have been made," he reiterated. "... Please help pray for my family and my brother."
In addition to the eight deaths, more than 300 were treated for injuries following the chaos that unfolded at approximately 9:15 p.m. on Friday, when fans in the crowd of about 50,000 began to rush the stage, according to authorities.
Scott, 30, addressed the incident in a statement released Saturday morning, offering his cooperation to the Houston Police Department. "I'm absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival," he wrote on Twitter.
Since the incident, however, Scott has been named in one of what is expected to be several lawsuits.
Injured concertgoer Manuel Souza filed a petition Saturday in Harris County District Court against Scott over what the petition describes as the "predictable and preventable" tragedy that unfolded, according to the court document obtained by PEOPLE. He's seeking at least $1,000,000 in damages and also asking for a temporary restraining order to prevent any destruction of evidence. The lawsuit also names Live Nation, organizer ScoreMore, Scott's Cactus Jack Records and several others.
Reps for Scott and Live Nation did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
