A California woman who collapsed and died while holding seats for her family at a sweltering jazz festival had only recently moved back into the Altadena home she lost in the devastating Los Angeles wildfires, her grieving relatives said.
Shari Sanders, 63, was found unconscious and unresponsive in the VIP area of Carson’s Anderson Memorial Park on Oct. 3, as temperatures climbed into the triple digits.
A doctor attending the festival performed CPR on Sanders for about 20 minutes, but she could not be saved.
Sanders had reportedly been reserving seats for her family during the dangerous heat wave when she suddenly collapsed.
Her death came after more than a year of rebuilding. Sanders’ family said the Eaton Fire destroyed the Altadena home where she had lived for 35 years.
The January 2025 blaze, driven by powerful Santa Ana winds, ripped through Altadena as the nearby Palisades Fire burned across other parts of Los Angeles County. Together, the fires destroyed thousands of homes.
Sanders had only recently returned to her rebuilt house when tragedy struck again.
“Her house was only recently finished, and she did not get to enjoy it for a month,” the family wrote in a GoFundMe appeal.
“Our family is devastated by this loss and is still trying to process what has happened,” the message continued.
The family described Sanders as “the glue keeping this family together.” She was a mother of three sons, grandmother to eight children and had also helped raise nieces and nephews.
The circumstances of Sanders’ death have prompted anger and criticism, including from celebrated percussionist Sheila E., who condemned festival organizers and city officials for allowing performances to continue after the woman died.
Sheila E., known as the “Queen of Percussion,” performed at the festival while Sanders’ body remained at the park.
“Production, whoever, the city, the mayor was there. All of you guys should have stopped the festival,” she said in an emotional video posted to Instagram. “I’m sorry. You should have stopped the festival.”
“Carson, you guys have to do better. This was horrible. Horrible. And I’m so sorry that I played because I would not have gotten onstage knowing that she was still there,” she added.
Sheila E. said she had been informed that someone had died before she performed, but did not understand that the woman’s body was still at the venue as the concert continued.
The performer said she assumed “everything was taken care of” and even included a blessing for Sanders during her set.
She also questioned whether the event had done enough to protect attendees from the extreme heat.
“The devastating part is she passed away, and we heard that … there was only one water station, which was unfortunate because there was just not enough water for everyone,” Sheila E. said.
Sanders’ relatives told KTLA they believe the death was heat-related. They also said she had no known history of medical problems.
Her body remained covered at the park until it was collected at 5 p.m., approximately 30 minutes after Sheila E. completed her performance.
A city spokesperson told the outlet that officials were reviewing the circumstances surrounding the death and cooperating with the appropriate authorities.
The cause of Sanders’ death remains under investigation.
