Expand / Collapse search
☰

Concerts continue at Camden's BB&T Pavilion after collapse

Published  August 7, 2016 1:41pm EDT
U.S.
FOX 29 Philadelphia

CAMDEN, N.J. (WTXF/AP) - Upcoming concerts have already continued as scheduled at Camden's BB&T Pavilion after a railing collapsed during Friday's Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa concert, injuring 42 people.

Saturday's "I Love the 90s" concert seemed to go on without any problems and Fifth Harmony is scheduled to go on as planned, Sunday.

The pavilion was checked for damages and the railings were replaced temporarily, along with extra security added.

Engineers were trying to figure out exactly what went wrong at the outdoor venue with an indoor seating section and open lawn seating.

A partition separating the lawn from a secondary stage set up at the rear of the seating section collapsed at about 10:30pm Friday, causing people to fall roughly 10 feet onto the concrete below.

The collapse occurred as the rappers were gesturing to fans to come toward the small stage, officials said. As people rushed toward the railing, it collapsed.

Live Nation, which operates the venue, announced Saturday it had "secured" the impacted section of railing. The company also said in a statement that it was working with authorities and structural engineers to determine the cause of the collapse.

Fans at Saturday's "I Love the 90s" concert featuring Salt N Pepa, Vanilla Ice and other performers told FOX 29's Sabina Kuriakose they trust everything is now safe.

The accident caused one fan a serious upper body injury but that person is out of the hospital.

Also, 41 others were treated for bruises and other minor injuries, though some had broken bones. Some Live Nation employees were among the injured, the company said.

Concertgoer Katie Colbridge said the show, which was about halfway finished, stopped abruptly when the accident happened. The performers were ushered from the stage moments after the collapse, and the show was later canceled.

An announcer urged the audience to remain calm as police and medics tended to the injured.

Initial reports indicated the force of the crowd caused the railing to collapse, but Live Nation said it's working to determine the exact cause.

Camden city spokesman Vincent Basara said city fire crews and inspectors responded to the scene and were there Saturday morning. They were working to stabilize the railing where the collapse occurred and determine what repairs would be needed.