Teen Who Died After Being Found Unresponsive at Lollapalooza Worked at Car Wash All Summer to Save for Ticket

A suburban Chicago teenager who died after being found unresponsive at the Lollapalooza music festival over the weekend had spent his summer working at a car wash to save for his ticket to the popular fest, his father said. 

Evan Kitzmiller, 16, loved live music and was enjoying his final summer outing before he was set to return to school. 

"That’s only thing he wanted was work to go to Lollapalooza," said his friend James Wright, who was with Kitzmiller for the first few days of the festival. "We both saved enough money to go, bought our tickets together." 

Kitzmiller was found unresponsive just before 8 p.m. Sunday in the 300 block of East Randolph Street, according to Chicago police and the Cook County Medical Examiner's office. The Mundelein teen was taken via private ambulance to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead just before 9 p.m., officials said.

Further details surrounding the incident were not immediately available and a death investigation remained ongoing, according to Chicago police.

"We thought he was OK, that he was in good hands," Wright said. "And then out of nowhere just people said, 'Evan’s not okay.'" 

Kitzmiller was attending the music festival in Grant Park, according to Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications.

"The safety and security of festival attendees is our top priority," OEMC spokeswoman Melissa Stratton said in a statement. "We are saddened to learn that an individual transported from the event in critical condition last night due to a medical emergency has since passed away. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this time."

A spokeswoman for the festival also said in a statement the teen's "family and loved ones are in our thoughts during this difficult time. We have no further information at this time."

The four-day music festival saw a combined total of 12 arrests and 160 attendees taken to area hospitals, officials said. The medical examiner had not revealed a cause of death for Kitzmiller as of Monday afternoon. 

Kitzmiller was an honor roll student and multi-sport athlete, according to Mundelein High School, where he was set to enter his junior year. 

"We, as the Mundelein High School family always come together and support each other in a time of need. Our deepest condolences to the Kitzmiller family," the school's statement read. 

"It's too young to lose someone like him," said Dina Nasios, who owned Atlas Car Wash, where Kitzmiller worked. "An unfortunate situation you don't want this to happen to anybody."