Indiana State Fair Stage Collapse Kill 5

ashlifuckedit · #31 ● 08-22-2011, 05:41 PM

6 are dead now.. heard it on the news the other day.. dont have the energy to find the link though.

gatagato · #32 ● 08-22-2011, 05:56 PM

Originally Posted by ashlifuckedit ↗

6 are dead now.. heard it on the news the other day.. dont have the energy to find the link though.

And it may get even worse

Seventh Fatality Expected After Indiana State Fair Stage Collapse at Sugarland Concert

Editor's note: The Marion County coroner's office in Indianapolis said Meagan Toothman, 24, of Cincinnati was on life support Monday morning (Aug. 22) and is scheduled to undergo surgery later in the day to fulfill her wish as an organ donor. A spokesperson for the Indiana State Police told The Associated Press that Toothman died late Sunday of injuries sustained at the Indiana State Fair.

The death toll from a stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair on Aug. 13 is expected to climb to seven. Meagan Toothman, a 24-year-old cheerleading coach at a Cincinnati high school was placed on life support late Sunday (Aug. 21).

"Late last night it became apparent that our Meagan was no longer with us," her family said in a message on caringbridge.com, where updates were posted about her condition. "The decision was made to allow to her to be at peace. This afternoon she is scheduled for a surgery that will provide gifts of sight, health, and life to dozens who are in need."

The accident occurred at Sugarland's concert when a strong wind gust hit the stage at the outdoor grandstand and toppled a canopy, scaffolding and other equipment into the crowd just moments before Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush of Sugarland and their band were scheduled to go onstage.

Those who died at the scene were identified as Tammy Vandam, 42, of Wanatah, Ind.; Glenn Goodrich, 49, of Indianapolis; Alina Bigjohny, 23, of Fort Wayne, Ind.; and Christina Santiago, 29, Chicago. Nathan Byrd, 51, of Indianapolis, who was part of the local stage crew working at the concert, died the following morning at a local hospital. A sixth person, college student Jennifer Haskell, died Friday (Aug. 19) from severe head injuries.
As previously reported, Nettles and Bush have announced plans to hold a memorial service for the victims at a later date. They resumed their Incredible Machine tour on Thursday night (Aug. 18) in Albuquerque, N.M., although the stage collapse in Indiana destroyed their touring equipment.

http://www.cmt.com/news/country-musi...-concert.jhtml

**kellyhound** · #33 ● 08-23-2011, 06:33 AM

Since the tragic stage collapse at the Sugarland concert at the Indiana State Fair last week, two more injured parties have died, and investigations into the collapse have raised some legal questions. Jennifer Haskell, a 22-year-old Ball State University student, died Friday morning. Meagan Toothman, a 24-year-old Cincinnati cheerleading coach, died late Sunday night.

The Indianapolis Star has reported that Indiana State Fair officials ignored National Weather Service warnings when they told concertgoers that the show would go on just before the storm hit. The man who gave that announcement, operations manager Bob Richards, says he "was never told or knew of an evacuation notice." Fair officials had received weather warnings three days in advance.

Gov. Mitch Daniels referred to the powerful wind gust that upset the stage as a "fluke." Others strongly disagree.
"This is in no way a fluke or freak or unforeseeable," said Mike Smith, senior vice president of AccuWeather Enterprise Solutions in Wichita, Kan. His firm provides weather information to a variety of public and private clients, including the Texas State Fair.

Smith said AccuWeather issued a warning to a client near the Indiana State Fairgrounds at 8:23 p.m. advising of 60-mph winds. Smith used the same radar systems as the National Weather Service -- the same information available to fair officials.

A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed on behalf of one of the victims, Tammy VanDam, 42, of Wanatah, Ind., and the attorney claims, "This stage was erected without any inspections or permits." The Chicago Tribune writes:

Allen's lawsuit, filed in Indiana state court against the event organizers, alleges that organizers "did not reasonably exercise due care in the design, set-up, configuration, layout and construction of the concert stage area." The complaint says the the concert stage was also overloaded with equipment, improperly configured and failed to meet safety guidelines, including those mandated by Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The lawsuit will also address Indiana's failure to recognize same-sex partners. VanDam's partner, who was also injured in the lawsuit, was unable to retrieve her partner's body at the morgue.

Meagan Toothman is on life support but her family decided to use her organs as a donor so tech. she's deceased.

ashlifuckedit · #34 ● 08-31-2011, 08:03 AM

two families of victims have filed lawsuits against the event producers and planners.

deanmine · #35 ● 01-13-2015, 05:58 PM

Video shows how winds toppled a stage at the Indiana State Fair Saturday night, killing five and injuring dozens of fans waiting for the country band Sugarland

Incredible Video Shows Indiana Stage Collapse

Video shows how winds toppled a stage at the Indiana State Fair Saturday night, killing five and injuring dozens of fans waiting for the country band Sugarland to perform.

The video obtained by Fox News shows a horrified crowd witnessing the collapse and panic as people ran from the sceben.

The wind was far stronger than that in other areas of the fairgrounds, said Dan McCarthy, chief meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Indiana. He estimated the gust at 60 to 70 mph.

"This is the finest event of its kind in America, this is the finest one we've ever had, and this desperately sad, as far as I can tell fluke event doesn't change that," Daniels said.

Four people were killed when the metal scaffolding that holds lights and other stage equipment fell, and a fifth died overnight at a hospital, Indiana State Police 1st Sgt. Dave Bursten said. The county coroner's office identified the victims as Alina Bigjohny, 23, of Fort Wayne; Christina Santiago, 29, of Chicago; Tammy Vandam, 42, of Wanatah; and two Indianapolis residents: 49-year-old Glenn Goodrich and 51-year-old Nathan Byrd. Byrd died overnight.

Forty-five people were taken to hospitals, and some may have gone on their own, Bursten said. Indiana University Health said 12 of the 26 people treated at its hospitals were still there, including three at its children's hospital. It did not provide information about their conditions.

Sugarland singer Jennifer Nettles sent a statement to The Associated Press through her manager, saying she watched recaps of the collapse on the news "in horror."

Nettles and Kristian Bush, who perform as Sugarland, canceled their Sunday show at the Iowa State Fair.

Sugarland manager Jason Owen referred questions about the accident to fair officials, saying in an email, "it was their stage and lighting rigs so it wouldn't be right for us to comment."

A timeline released by Indiana State Police showed fair staff contacted the National Weather Service four times between 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. The weather service said at 8 p.m. that a storm with hail and 40 mph winds was expected to hit the fairgrounds at 9:15 p.m., and fair staff began making evacuation plans.

Concert-goers said opening act Sara Bareilles had finished performing and the crowd was waiting for Sugarland to take the stage when an announcer alerted them that severe weather was possible and gave instructions on what to do if an evacuation was necessary. But the announcer also said concert organizers hoped the show would go on, and many fans stayed put.

The timeline shows the announcement was made at 8:45 p.m., and the gust hit four minutes later. Witnesses said dirt, dust, rain and wind came barreling up the fairground's main thoroughfare and then the stage collapsed.