Stage Collapse at Sugarland Concert in Indy is Deadly
Sunday, August 14, 2011 at 6:38AM At least four people were killed and 40 people were injured in a stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair during a severe thunderstorm on Saturday night.
Indiana State Police confirmed the fatalities and said the injuries to some victims are so severe that the death toll could rise.
The video is chilling.
The collapse happened about 8:50 p.m. as Sugarland, a country music act, was preparing to perform on the fair's main stage.
The National Weather Service said winds estimated at 60 to 70 mph hit the stage ahead of a line of severe thunderstorms.
A severe thunderstorm warning had been issued for Marion County before the collapse.
An on-site emergency center was set up at the fairgrounds immediately after the collapse. Other people at the concert converged on the collapsed stage in the immediate aftermath, trying to pull the injured from beneath the mangled wreckage.
"It's gratifying to know that people at a moment's notice will jump in to help others," Bursten said.
"After the stage fell, it was complete chaos. Everyone had froze," said Jason Scofield, who was at the concert. "There was hundreds of people trying to lift the front of the stage up."
Some patients were taken to Wishard Memorial Hospital and Methodist Hospital, both equipped with trauma facilities. Hospitals brought in extra personnel to handle an influx of patients.
Other patients were taken by ambulance to various hospitals in and around Indianapolis, and some were driven to hospitals. Several children were among those injured, and at least three of them were taken to Riley Hospital for Children.
Officials asked anyone worried about a loved one they haven't heard from after the stage collapse to contact the American Red Cross, which opened its headquarters on East 10th Street in Indianapolis. People trying to get in touch with loved ones can call the Red Cross
Sugarland posted this message on the band's Facebook wall:
"You may see on the news that our stage collapsed tonight. We are all right. We are praying for our fans, and for the people of Indianapolis," the post read. "We hope you will join us. They need your strength."
