Michael Jackson 'near death' during tour rehearsals

Michael Jackson was 'near death' during rehearsals for his 'This Is It' tour.

The late King of Pop died of acute Propofol intoxication in 2009 while preparing for his comeback in London and the associate producer for the concerts, Alif Sankey, says she informed tour director Kenny Ortega that Michael was unwell during rehearsals.

Testifying during the seventh day of the Jackson family's negligence lawsuit against concert promoter AEG Live in Los Angeles, she said: 'I had a very strong feeling that Michael was dying. I was very upset, and I was screaming into the phone at that point. ... I said, 'He needs to be put in the hospital now.'

'[Kenny] kept listening to me because I kept going. ... I kept saying, 'Michael's going. Michael's dying. He's leaving us. He needs to be put in the hospital. Please do something, please.''

However, according to the New York Daily News, Alif admitted Michael was excited about the tour because it was the first time his children, Prince Michael, 16, Paris, 15 and 11-year-old Blanket, would have seen him perform a series of shows.

She added: 'He shared with me that he was excited to do the show. He was excited to show his kids finally who he was, what he was all about. He was very, very happy and excited about that.'