Chris Evans Comments on Death of 3-Year-Old at CarFest

Chris Evans has addressed the heartbreaking death of a three-year-old toddler who passed away after a “medical incident” at his family-friendly music festival, CarFest.

The young boy was urgently transported to a hospital off-site around 11pm on Saturday, 24 August, but unfortunately, he did not survive.

The event, which featured performances by Richard Ashcroft, Olly Murs, and Johnny Marr, was founded by Evans in 2011 to showcase live music and motoring track shows.

Evans explained that the family of the child had known about his impending death and had cherished every moment with him. The boy had dealt with severe, complex underlying health issues since birth.

As he returned to his show on Virgin Radio, Evans shared a plea from the affected family. “As reports have accurately stated, the CarFest team and I have consistently been asked by the family to respect their privacy while they grieve this profound loss,” he said.

“Which, of course, is exactly what we’ve been doing and why we haven’t mentioned anything about this story so far.

“That said, on Wednesday afternoon, the little boy’s dad reached out to me via a telephone call and requested I make a sincere plea to anyone and everyone going forward.

“And that plea is simply this: Can we all please ensure we have the amazing What Three Words app downloaded on our phones?”

The app allows users to pinpoint precise locations using three words and is often used by emergency services.

Evans elaborated that the boy’s father believes the What Three Words app was crucial in enabling emergency services to locate his precise position at the accessibility campsite at CarFest and to attend to his son’s serious medical emergency as quickly as possible.

The air ambulance, the ambulance service, the police, the fire service, and CarFest first responders were all called to assist following the incident.

“Tragically, as we now know, despite all their best efforts, they were still unable to save the little boy. But his dad remains insistent that What Three Words gave those professionals best equipped to help, the best chance of helping.”

Evans continued, “From what I’ve learned, from what I’ve heard over the last week, it seems not a moment went by when they weren’t giving it their all to ensure he was being loved as much as anyone has ever been loved before.”

He also confirmed that he plans to hold next year’s CarFest in the young boy’s name, pending the family’s permission.

Hampshire Police are investigating the incident and stated, “The death is being treated as unexpected, and a file is being prepared for the coroner.”

Additional reporting by agencies

Source: Getty Images, Bruno Coleman