Andy Rivas – One Year Later – A Story Of Courage, Stength, And Hope Inspired By Music

Friday, March 31st, 2023 should have been a fun night of headbanging and rocking out to some awesome bands for Andy Rivas. However, that all changed about an hour into the show he was at. He was attending a show including Morbid Angel, Revocation and Skeletal Remains, and Crypta at the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere, Illinois – about 14 miles outside the city of Rockford. The venue calls itself “a premier music and event theatre”. There were about 260 people in the building that night.

Crypta had just finished their set when everything got crazy, Devastating storms came through the area, and the building’s roof and front awning came crashing down. People were trapped under the rubble. Concert-goers tried to help each other escape. Sadly, one person died. 20 ambulances were dispatched to transport 28 people to local hospitals. Five had severe injuries, 18 had moderated injuries, and five had minor injuries. Andy would be one of those with severe injuries. I’ll explain more later.

Andy told me what it was like when the roof was starting to collapse. He said there was dust falling, and when he looked up he saw the concrete cracking. There was a noise like a train passing by Andy turned around and tried to run, but it was too late. He was under the debris, and it was so heavy he couldn’t move. It was dark. He could feel people running on top and hear voices. He tried to yell for help but his mouth was full of dust. Not being able to do anything was frustrating.

Other concert-goers risked their lives to dig Andy out and save him. He remembers seeing light and feeling air. One guy grabbed Andy’s right hand and the others were lifting a big piece of concrete. That piece broke and fell on top of him again. Finally, they pulled him out and other people started caring for him. He couldn’t walk, and the pain came. A paramedic tagged him, and he remembers riding in the ambulance and a mask being put on him. After that he didn’t wake up until Wednesday. He was in so much pain and was told that he had been in an induced coma. He spent one month in OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, Illinois, and was transferred to OSF Saint Paul Medical Center in Mendota, Illinois, where he was for another month.

Andy was in ICU for about two weeks. He had two surgeries and had a wound vac for two months. He says it was “the worst pain ever”. His hips were broken and dislocated, he had an open wound on his buttocks, and his leg, feet, toes were broken. He couldn’t walk, so he had to learn to move around with a walker to the wheelchair, but the wound vac made it even more difficult. Once that was out it made things a little easier. He had to learn how to walk again. He continues to use a cane, but has made great progress. He did physical therapy for several months and continues to work on his own.

How has Andy managed to find his courage and strength through all of this? Music and his music family have been huge influences. He jokes that music is his favorite thing in the world other than tacos. Some of his biggest supporters have been the band Nonpoint and the 361 Degrees Nonpoint fan group. He says they’ve been there from the start and have continued to be there. Nonpoint guitarist Rasheed Thomas was at the hospital when Andy was in a coma. He left Andy a note and the rest of the band checked on him. Ironically, Andy remembers that when he was in the coma he had a dream in which he heard Rasheed talking.

Others who supported Andy included Skye Sweetnam from Sumo Cyco, Blake Suarez from Awaken The Giant, Matt James and Matt “Catt” Curtis from Blacktop Mojo, Jody Linnell from Transient, and Kyle Hawken from Black Satellite. He also got encouragement and motivation from three guys on a podcast called The Itch – Aaron, KC, and Dan. Andy says he was basically in bed for two months, and pretty much all he did was listen to music and podcasts.

Andy has made many friends since he got injured, including the people that took care of him in the hospital. He’s still in contact with them. Other new friends include the aforementioned guys from The Itch podcast. At a Nonpoint show in Chicago back in December, members of the 361 Degrees group came from Wisconsin just to see him. He also was supported by fans of Sevendust. Andy’s friend Ollie Besinger took care of his cats and his house when he was away, and has also been very supportive of the art that Andy is creating. The art is something that not only is helping Andy make some money, but it is also helping him cope with PTSD. The support of all of his friends has been so important to Andy, because his family is in Mexico.

Andy says that his metal and rock family and the music itself have saved him and kept him going. The music community took care of him and continue to do so. He is grateful to the people who dug him out of the rubble. He would like to meet the band Crypta someday, because they were the main reason he was at the show at the Apollo Theatre.

Even though it’s hard for Andy to think about the events of March 31st, 2023, and he wishes he didn’t need the cane, he also knows he is lucky to be alive and that he is here for a reason. He is a warrior, a hero, and a true inspiration to many.

Rasheed from Nonpoint and Andy with one of Andy’s art creations

Below I am sharing a link to Andy’s art Instagram page and also a Spotify playlist he created in honor of his music family who have been so supportive. I’m also including the Nonpoint video for “A Million Watts” which Andy was in.

Here is the link to Andy’s art Instagram page and some photos of his creations below:

https://www.instagram.com/andy_bone.collector/