Emergency exercise preceded Ind. fair disaster
The stage collapses at the Indiana State Fair August 13, 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The stage fell just before country duo Sugarland were scheduled to perform, killing at least four people and injuring as many as 40 more.
Posted: 02/09/2012
INDIANAPOLIS - A state agency's report says the Indiana State Fair's executive director and other officials took part in an emergency exercise last July that eerily foreshadowed weather conditions a month later that caused a deadly stage collapse.
The report by the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration says the July 12 exercise foretold almost the exact conditions of the Aug. 13 tragedy, when seven people were killed after the stage rigging plunged into the crowd.
The scenario imagined high winds, lighting and hail and specifically mentioned the concert by country duo Sugarland, which fans were waiting to hear before the stage collapse.
A state labor department spokesman says it proves the fair commission had insufficiently prepared for the conditions.
On Wednesday, the commission paid a $6,300 IOSHA fine for workplace violations.
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