Journey’s classic tune was blasting as students — bathed in the purple stage lights began signing “Don’t Stop Believin’.”
What happened next came as a shock to those at Thursday night’s performance of “American Pie”at Westfield high school in Westfield, Indiana, just north of Indianapolis. Just as the students began their finale, with performers leaping joyfully on to the stage for a big dance number, the stage collapsed, injuring at least two dozen people,according to the Indianpolis Star, one critically.
Screaming can be heard as the stage gives way, sending the performers tumbling into the orchestra pit. “Oh my God,” someone yells.
“I was just in a state of shock,” Cameron Snyder, 18, a senior, told the Associated Press. Snyder said that when the stage collapsed, people rushed to help. According to Chris Baldwin, who works in human resources for the high school, the stage gave way into the orchestra pit below.
“Some parents rushed the stage area,” Mandi McKinley Brown told The Indianapolis Star. “Most of us stayed in our seats to stay out of the way. People were lifting large pieces of the stage out of the pit from on top of the kids.”
Authorities did not release the exact number people injured but said at lease one person was in critical condition, reports the The Associated Press.
“We have some seriously injured people,” Westfield Fire Department Chief Joe Lyon told The Star. “Not one hospital is going to be able to handle this many patients.”
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