The Online Reflector

The Indiana State Fair and the city of Indianapolis suffered a tragedy on Saturday, Aug. 13, when the Indiana State Fair Grandstand stage and rigging collapsed moments before the band Sugarland was set to go on stage.

The stage collapsed due to a severe wind gust that blew through at 8:44 p.m. There are investigations into the matter and answers could take months to surface.

As of The Reflector presstime, six people had been killed and more than 40 injured, in addition to the emotional distress caused for many who were in attendance, including two University of Indianapolis students.

Junior communication major Lara Parker was working at the fair taking tickets that evening and was located at the gate closest to the Grandstand. As she ripped tickets for fans going into the concert, she told them how envious she was that they were able to attend.

Later, Parker had begun to text a friend at the concert to ask why the music wasn’t playing when the gust of wind blew through.

“All of a sudden, a huge gust of wind hits, then I hear screams,” Parker said. “They weren’t screams of excitement or happiness; they were screams of terror. My skin started to prickle, and immediately I knew something had gone wrong.”

Meanwhile, senior biology major Elizabeth Eads had been in the grandstands for the concert. She enjoyed the opening act by Sara Bareilles, and friends she went to the concert with were checking the radar and placing bets on whether the storm would pass over them.

“I was afraid it would rain and that the concert might get canceled, but I wasn’t nervous about my safety at that point,” Eads said.

Eads described a huge black cloud in the sky and said that as it started to get darker, someone then came on stage to tell the audience where to go in case of a storm, but said that if it did storm, they would wait for it to pass and the show would resume.

“I was in the first row of the grandstands in the very center,”  Eads said. “Since the grandstands are covered, I thought I’d take my chances with the rain and only leave if I had to.”

Soon after, all of the fans in the Grandstands evacuated.

“It only felt like seconds after the announcer left the stage that I saw a huge dust cloud to the left of the stage and felt a cool burst of air,” Eads said.  “I heard a creaking noise and it felt like I was in slow motion as I saw the stage start to sway, the canopy fly off and the stage fall forward.  I remember seeing a few stagehands fall with the stage. Everyone was running and screaming.”

Eads described how she got out quickly, unsure of the cause of the stage collapse and worried about her own safety. Though she felt as if the events were in slow motion, she knew everything happened quickly, because she reached the safety of a horse barn before the rain had even started. She was able to find the group she had been with but said many people had panicked as they had been separated from friends and family.

“The image of the people around me who were crying and yelling as they searched for their loved ones will haunt me forever,” Eads said.

Eads said she and others were contained in a building for about an hour, while help arrived and people were called over the loudspeaker to go to the main office. Emergency personnel blocked certain gates when she was released, and she said it took a while to leave her parking space.

“My heart just ached with every passing ambulance. I can honestly say I had never been so glad to get home.”

The fair reopened with a memorial service on Monday, Aug. 15.  Gov. Mitch Daniels spoke at the service. Parker attended and described it as an emotional experience.

A fund was set up in memory of those who died from the stage collapse. Musical groups Maroon 5 and Train were originally set to perform at the fair and instead performed at Conseco Fieldhouse on Aug. 18, donating all of their performance fees to that fund. Conseco also donated the concert proceeds.

Two other concerts scheduled for the State Fair, Janet Jackson and Lady Antebellum, were canceled.

Sugarland said in a letter to fans, family and friends that the group plans to hold a private memorial in Indiana to honor those fans who died.

The UIndy Health and Counseling Center is free to students who need to talk about the tragedy.

“I still cannot believe it happened,” Parker said. “I have gone to concerts in that Grandstand at least eight times, and I cannot imagine something like this happening. It’s unheard of.  It’s tragic and it’s heartbreaking.”

Eads shared those thoughts.

“It’s an experience I will never forget,” she said. “It was just so sad.  I feel thankful for my own safety, but I wish there was more I could do to help.”

At the memorial service, Daniels spoke of the bravery of those who stayed to help at the concert and in its aftermath.

“My heart is full for those people who, some from duty but many simply from their love and personal bravery, acted in courageous ways to make sure Saturday night was not worse than it was,” Daniels said. “All day yesterday, I talked to state troopers, firemen, emergency personnel. Every one of them had a story about that stranger who was to their left and their right helping extricate the injured, lift the scaffolding, with complete disregard of their own safety. There was a hero every ten feet on Saturday night.”