Taylor Swift postpones Eras Tour Show due to ‘extreme temperatures’

Taylor Swift has postponed Saturday’s Eras Tour show due to “extreme temperatures” in Brazil.

The Midnights The singer just took to Instagram and shared that she came to the decision to postpone the show while in her dressing room at Estadio Nilton Santos in Rio de Janeiro.

“I’m writing this from my dressing room in the stadium. The decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show due to the extreme temperatures in Rio,” she said in a handwritten message shared on her Instagram Story. “The safety and well-being of my fans, fellow artists and crew must and will always come first.”

The reprieve will come one day after a fan died Friday just before attending the concert. Before taking the stage, the “Lavender Haze” singer said she was “devastated” after hearing about the fan’s death. She added that she wouldn’t be able to talk about it from the stage because she felt “overwhelmed with sadness.”

“I can’t believe I’m writing these words, but it is with a broken heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show,” Swift said in a handwritten note shared to her Instagram Story. “I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. There is very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and way too young.”

She added: “I want to say that I feel this loss deeply now and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends. This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil. “

Time for Fun, one of the event organizers, announced the verified X account stated that the victim was 23-year-old Ana Clara Benevides. According to the organizer’s statement (written in Portuguese), Benevides felt unwell and was immediately attended to by paramedics before being taken to the stadium’s medical center. She was then transported to a nearby hospital, where she died.

According to multiple reports, Benevides went into cardiac arrest, allegedly due to the extreme heat. The Associated Press had previously reported that Brazil is experiencing a dangerous heat wave. The heat index reached a whopping 137 degrees Tuesday morning and Saturday’s feel-like temperature was expected to be 111 degrees.

Mayor Eduardo Paes of Rio de Janeiro went to his X account Saturday morning and shared “the loss of a young woman’s life on the show” is “unacceptable.” Amid the intense heat wave, the mayor has instructed organizers to allow fans into the stadium an hour earlier than normal, increase water distribution points and increase the number of ambulances.

The fan’s shocking death prompted the Brazilian government to reportedly launch an investigation into access to water during concerts. It was reported that fans complained that they were not allowed to bring water fights to the stadium despite the high temperatures The Associated Press reported that fans launched an online petition Saturday morning calling for a “Benevides Act” to “make water mandatory at events.”

Hordes of fans lined up at the stadium hours before the gates opened, shielding themselves from the intense sun with umbrellas before postponing Saturday’s show.

This is the second time Swift has had to postpone one of her Eras Tour shows due to extreme weather. She had to reschedule the second night of her three-show stay in Argentina, saying the “chaotic weather” would endanger her fans and crew.

“I love a rain show, but I will never put my fans, fellow artists and crew in danger,” Swift wrote on Instagram. “We have moved tonight’s show in Buenos Aires to Sunday because the weather is so chaotic that it would be unsafe to organize this concert. Good news is that I can stay longer in Argentina!”

On her night off, Swift was spotted holding hands with the Kansas City Chiefs star on a date in Buenos Aires.