23-Year-Old Woman Dies After Freak Accident at Music Festival

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — A 23-year-old woman died after suffering a head injury during a music festival on Saturday, her family confirmed on Monday.

Ava Ahlander was attending the RedWest Music Festival with friends when severe weather prompted an evacuation. According to her uncle, Bobby Ahlander, the group sought shelter in a car parked near the festival grounds when tragedy struck.

“Her friends said some big piece of wood plank just like flew through the air and hit her in the head,” Bobby said. The plank measured approximately 2 feet by 12 feet and fell from a nearby apartment building under construction, striking Ava after strong winds lifted it. The board fell from a height of about 30 feet.

Salt Lake City Police reported that Ava was critically injured and rushed to a local hospital. Doctors later declared her dead, having determined that the board had severely damaged her brain stem.

Bobby Ahlander expressed his grief, stating, “As you can imagine, this was absolutely devastating news. Ava was an absolute delight of a human being. Everyone loved her.” He added that she had flown in from Seattle specifically to attend the concert featuring Post Malone.

A GoFundMe page created in her memory described Ava as a “beautiful soul” and noted her decision to become an organ donor, which her family viewed as a final act of generosity.

Many people contributed to the fundraiser, which aims to cover medical and burial expenses for Ava and counseling for her affected friends.

The National Weather Service had issued a high wind warning for Saturday, with gusts reaching 60 mph as a storm moved through the area. Police stated that the wind likely caused the scaffolding to collapse.