More than a dozen people were injured — at least one critically — when a stage full of high school students collapsed during a musical performance in Indiana, authorities said.
Westfield High School students were performing a cover of Journey’s 1981 rock anthem "Don’t Stop Believin'" when a portion of the stage suddenly gave way, sending shrieking teens tumbling. The students fell into a room below the stage which was unoccupied, NBC station WTHR reported.
"Everyone was dancing and singing and having a ball and then all of a sudden the floor just fell and everybody just fell down," witness Cameron Snyder said. "A lot of my friends were up on stage. It was just hard to see them go down... It was pretty bad."
Westfield Police Capt. Charles Hollowell told reporters that more than a dozen people were hurt and that "at least one" had person suffered critical injuries. All others were minor orthopedic injuries, the Westfield Fire Department said.
Hospital system St. Vincent Health said a total of 13 students were being treated at its hospitals in Carmel and Indianapolis. Five patients over the age of 18 are in good condition, but the conditions of the eight minors were not being released because of privacy regulations, a spokesperson said.
Six students were transported by ambulance to area hospitals, the Westfield Fire Department said.
Two other patients went on their own to nearby Riverview Health and are being evaluated, a hospital spokesperson added.
Westfield Mayor Andy Cook said the fire marshal was on the scene and an investigation into why the stage collapsed is underway.
Hollowell said classes would resume Friday as scheduled. School officials said counselors will be on hand to help students. Westfield is a city of about 30,000 north of Indianapolis.
