Chase Center Earth, Wind & Fire show abruptly postponed for medical emergency

A performance Thursday at Chase Center was abruptly postponed after one of the acts, soul superstars Earth, Wind & Fire, had to pull out of the show.

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A medical emergency prevented the band from taking the stage for its tour with pop icon Lionel Richie very close to show time, and hundreds of concertgoers had to leave the venue, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. (The Chronicle and SFGATE are both owned by Hearst but have separate newsrooms.) Chase Center put up the postponement notice on social media at 7:22 p.m. Thursday, and the show was scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m., with the doors opening at 6:30 p.m. The venue seats nearly 20,000 people for musical acts.

San Francisco Fire Department spokesperson Capt. Mariano Elias told the Chronicle that the agency was dispatched to the venue for a medical emergency at 5:30 p.m., and one person was ultimately transported to the hospital. 

The show will be rescheduled, Chase Center said in its post, and ticket holders will be able to obtain a refund or tickets for the new show date.

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“We sincerely apologize for the unexpected change and appreciate everyone’s understanding,” Earth, Wind & Fire’s publicist said in a statement to SFGATE. 

Lionel Richie announced his Sing a Song All Night Long Tour with Earth, Wind & Fire in January of this year, and they have been performing together since June in venues around the nation. The tour has performances scheduled for Saturday in Palm Desert and Sunday in Los Angeles.

The band is also set to perform Sept. 15 near Sacramento.