Harry Styles' pre-Super Bowl gig in Miami's Meridian at Island Gardens has been branded 'Fyre Festival 2.0' after fans were forced to evacuate the venue amid extreme weather conditions.
The Pepsi Zero-sponsored show, which would have seen Harry performing with Lizzo, was called off halfway through, moments before the One Direction singer was due to take to the stage.
Devastated fans were told to get out of the venue as "severe weather" swept into the area, with ticketholders having to pick their way across a muddy construction site with floodwater up to their knees in order to evacuate.
Harry himself tweeted to apologise for his no-show, telling fans: "To those of you here in Miami, I was told there's a severe storm on the way. The fire department would not let us do the show under any circumstances. Please stay safe. I’m so disappointed, and I’m sorry. I love you all. H."
Furious revellers claimed they'd been told to throw away their phone chargers earlier in the evening to get in, so were left stranded as Uber prices surged to $300 for pickups.
Pepsi tweeted after the initial evacuation message to say: "As ordered by the Miami Fire Dept, Planet Pepsi Zero Sugar had to unfortunately be canceled due to extreme weather. This was a mandatory evacuation in Miami across special event venues. We are focused on ensuring everyone is safely evacuated. We deeply apologize to the fans."
It then promised to refund all ticketholders, adding: "For all attendees of tonight's Planet Pepsi Zero Sugar Party, we understand this is disappointing, and want to do what we can to make this right. We are offering a full refund for tonight's show and for your ride share from the venue. Details coming soon."
But fans were left bitterly disappointed by the events, with many comparing it to the failed luxury music festival that defrauded ticketholders out of millions.
"The harry styles planet pepsi concert was deadass fyre fest 2.0. @pepsi im so mad at you," one tweeted.
"Fyre festival walked so the pepsi event could run," another joked.
A third quipped: "At least the people at FYRE festival got sandwiches."
Others blasted the safety of the venue, with one claiming construction work was still being completed on Friday morning.
"They were literally still doing construction on the building roof today the place was NOT ready for an event!! any other venue and it probably wouldn't have been cancelled but i talked to staff and their roof could not withstand the wind we! love! to hear it!" they wrote.
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