Luke Combs is paying for the funerals of three people who were found dead near a music festival he performed at over the weekend.
Asha Goodman, a representative for Combs, confirmed to USA TODAY Thursday that the country singer has covered the funeral costs.
The three men were found dead after suspected carbon monoxide exposure inside a travel trailer near Michigan’s Faster Horses Festival, which Combs headlined Friday night.
Other headliners included Thomas Rhett (Saturday) and Jason Aldean (Sunday).
Lenawee County Sheriff’s officials said they received a 911 call Saturday afternoon about “unresponsive persons” at a campground near the three-day country music festival in Brooklyn. First responders arrived to find five unconscious men in their early 20s inside the trailer.
Three were pronounced dead at the scene, but two were taken by ambulance to a local hospital in critical condition and treated for acute carbon monoxide poisoning, the sheriff’s office said at the time. According to investigators, the 911 caller was a friend who became concerned when he had not heard from the men.
“This tragic incident is being investigated as a suspected carbon monoxide exposure from a generator located very near the travel trailer,” they said in a statement.
State police were also investigating the death of Melissa Donna Havens, 30, at the festival. An autopsy and toxicology tests were performed on Havens, whose body was found early Saturday. Detectives were seeking the public’s help in identifying a man Havens was seen with within 24 hours of her body’s discovery.
“Detectives want the public to know there is no danger or threats to people” at the festival, state police said at the time.
The festival addressed the deaths in a statement on Instagram Monday.
“All of us in the Faster Horses Festival Family are deeply saddened by the tragic losses this weekend,” read the statement. “We will continued to stay in close contact with The Lenawee County Sherriff and all other Law enforcement agencies, and follow their lead regarding any and all information as it is officially confirmed. Our hearts are broken for the families, friends and loved ones.”
Organizers did address the use of generators at campsites on their festival fact sheet, saying generators can be used except in the infield. But the approval came with a warning.
“Campsites are very close together, so we request that all Festival campers be considerate of their camping neighbors when utilizing a generator,” the fact sheet says. “To avoid excessive amounts of carbon monoxide and noise, please ‘pipe up’ internal generators. This will allow the exhaust to be released above the RV and not into your neighbors’ camping area.”
The Jackson County medical examiner’s office said Monday morning autopsies had been performed and some bodies had been released for funeral services, but deferred questions about the cause and manner of death to the Lenawee County Sheriff’s Office.
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Faster Horses, which launched in 2013 and traditionally draws 40,000-plus fans daily, is also known as the “three-day hillbilly sleepover,” because most fest-goers camp at sites in and around the race track where cars zoom around at 215 to 220 mph.
Michigan’s first major music festival since 2019, the festival started Friday with excitement that included impromptu “U-S-A” chants, girlfriends-on-shoulders popping up across the crowd and occasional elbow-bump greetings.
The music festival’s status faced uncertainty for months because of pandemic restrictions. The event was considered a bellwether as the live entertainment business prepared to reboot after a 15-month lull.
4 die at Faster Horses Festival in Michigan, including 3 of suspected carbon monoxide poisoning
Contributing: John Bacon, USA TODAY; Frank Witsil and Brian McCollum, Detroit Free Press
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