Stage falls on Sugarland crowd at Indiana State Fair

State fair: We ordered an evacuation. We just didn't tell anybody.

http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/local/marion_county/fair-we-made-the-decision-to-evacuate

 

Anyone else look at the scaffolding for those stage lights and think, "That thing looks abnormally tall?"

 

I was at an outdoor concert in Indiana the same night and they evacuated us well in advance. No excuse for the concert organizers. And another reminder for people that when they tell you to evacuate in the Midwest, they aren't just being overbearing nannies. Get the hell out of there.

I was just at the Pepsi Coliseum in May for Arcade Fire and I think they could squeeze 9,000 or 10,000 in there if they need a venue for the other acts.

 

As I recall, that Arcade Fire show was moved there because it was originally scheduled for an outdoor venue, and the weather was awful. So it can be done!

 

Problem with the Pepsi Coliseum is twofold:
1. It's already booked during the fair with horse shows/4H stuff.
2. It's got the worst acoustics of any concert venue ever made. And that might be understating it a bit.

 

Not like this has never happened before either, just a couple years ago at the Big Valley Jamboree in Camrose, Alberta, a wind storm hit hard in 2009 and the stage collapsed, luckily only killing one, but I think as many as 75 were injured. With that 33 charges were laid against the companies involved in the music festival this past July. The BVJ is not some small show either, bringing in some of the biggest acts in country music every year, I believe it is the biggest in Canada, so for outdoor festivals it should have at least been on the radar as far as stage design for outdoor music festivals are concerned.

http://www.torontosun.com/2011/07/29/charges-laid-in-big-valley-jamboree-stage-collapse

 

I saw Beck in about '97 or so in the Expo Hall. Kick out the sheep and clean it up.

 

What state agency is responsible for inspecting outdoor stages? Trick question: no one is responsible!

http://www.indystar.com/article/20110816/NEWS15/108160318/Inspections-not-required-outdoor-stages?odyssey=mod|breaking|text|IndyStar.com

Let the free market decide who lives or dies at a concert!

(Unfortunately, I wouldn't be shocked if this were the rule just about everyone. Also, I wouldn't be shocked if the stage showed signs of cracking even before the wind gust came, given the heavy equipment being hooked onto a very flimsy structure.)

 

Also, Sugarland itself just about got taken out by the stage. They were about to run onstage to start the show, except the stage manager held them back. A minute later, crash.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sugarland-stage-collapse-indiana-state-fair-saved-lives-223600

 

A couple of videos from the Brady Block Party on August 6:

The first one was made by someone near the stage. You can see where the tarp covering the stage has been ripped away by high wind. The second one is later (and from a distance) and shows The Flaming Lips video screen crashing down. I'm surprised the giant disco ball didn't come down as well.

 

This may be knee-jerk, but this state seems to have a serious problem when it comes to wind safety at this point. Once may be a fluke. Twice is a pattern.