By SARAH MASLIN NIR
The New York Times
At least four people were killed and 40 injured after whipping winds sent metal stage rigging crashing down onto the crowd at a concert at the Indiana State Fair on Saturday night, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
The accident occurred around 9 p.m. at the Hoosier Lottery Grandstand during an intermission, according to Jill Schmidt, a regional dispatch manager for the Indianapolis police.
Three children were taken to Riley Hospital for Children and eight adults to Methodist Hospital of Indianapolis. At Wishard Memorial Hospital, 17 patients, children and adults were being treated for injuries, none of them life-threatening, according to a hospital spokesman. None of the performers were injured.
At around 9:30, the singer-songwriters Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush of the headlining act Sugarland posted on their Twitter account: “We are all right. We are praying for our fans, and the people of Indianapolis. We hope you’ll join us. They need your strength.” Shortly after, videos of the accident surfaced on YouTube and Facebook. In one, dust lashes across the sky before the rigging collapses onto the screaming crowd.
At the hospitals, auxiliary emergency room workers were called in; at Methodist, a staff of 50 was treating the severely injured on Saturday night as more than a dozen walk-ins poured in through the evening.
“It’s a pretty serious situation, especially when you have to call in most of your emergency crews,” said Kristofer Karol, a spokesman for Indiana University Health, which operates Methodist and Riley. He would not say what sorts of injuries were being treated. “It’s under control back here but everybody is working to get us through this,” he said.
At 10:30, Sara Bareilles, the evening’s other performer, posted on Twitter, “I’m speechless and feel so helpless. Please send love and prayers to Indianapolis tonight. My heart aches for the lives lost.” She signed with the tag “#indyiloveyou.”
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