Hoosier State Press Association - The Indiana Publisher - Better Newspaper Contest
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/96748
Story of the Year The Indianapolis Star Division 6 State Fair stage collapse The Indianapolis Star staff Tim Evans The Indianapolis Star It���s a troubling question in the midst of tragedy but one that state officials must now try to answer: Was there something that could have been done to avoid the deadly catastrophe that took place Saturday at the Indiana State Fair? On Sunday, various state agencies began the sobering task of trying to explain just how five people were killed and 45 others were injured when an overhead stage rigging came crashing down on people waiting for the start of a Sugarland concert. Some, including Gov. Mitch Daniels, blamed the horrific collapse on a cruel and random act of Mother Nature ��� a sudden, powerful wind gust. ���I���m not clear,��� Daniels said, ���how anyone could have foreseen a sudden, highly localized blast of wind.��� But others questioned whether part of the problem was man-made ��� and questioned why State Fair officials and State Police didn���t take ominous weather warnings more seriously and specifically order an evacuation before the storm hit. ���They should have told people to get out,��� said Jay Kizer, 35, Whiteland, who was in attendance. ���But they didn���t.��� Fair officials said Sunday they were trying to. But they ran out of time. Indiana State Fair spokesman Andy Klotz said the ultimate decision to evacuate an event lies with fair Executive Director Cindy Hoye, in consultation with State Police and emergency personnel. Dan McCarthy, the meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service office in Indianapolis, said the agency had been tracking the possibility of Saturday night storms since Friday and had been in regular contact with fair officials and police as the storm approached. He said the agency issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Marion County at 8:39 p.m., with wind gusts as high as 77 mph reported in Plainfield, just west of Indianapolis, as the storm approached the city. Six minutes later, Bob Richards, programming director for a local country music station, took the stage to issue a statement to fans that State Police say was preliminary. He told fans that severe weather was moving into the area, but that unless the weather became worse, the show would go on. His announcement included instructions on how and where to seek shelter. Some left. Most stayed. Kaylee McCracken, 14, Greenwood, was among those waiting eagerly in the Sugar Pit directly in front of the stage. ���They said it might rain and the concert might be delayed,��� McCracken said early Sunday. ���They didn���t say anything like a tornado is coming or that we had to leave right away.��� But apparently they were about to be told just that. While Richards was on stage, Hoye and State Police Special Operations Commander Brad Weaver were conferring about their next move. Hoye and Weaver ���were deciding how to get the audience to get evacuated from the Grandstand, but they never had a chance to make that announcement,��� Klotz said Sunday. ���There was a follow-up announcement on the way, but it never got made.��� Approximately four minutes after Richards��� announcement, the gust blasted through ��� and the stage collapsed. According to McCarthy, two weather service employees attending the concert as fans estimated the gust that toppled the rigging was ���in the range of 60 to 70 mph.��� McCarthy said it is not unusual for high winds to precede a storm like the one Saturday night that rolled through Central Indiana. He said such storms can create a ���downdraft��� that kicks up winds in front of it ���like waves or ripples in water.��� But predicting just how strong those gusts can be is not easy, he said, because a variety of factors can affect the speed and intensity of the wind. In a statement Sunday, Daniels praised fair officials and the National Weather Service for their efforts to monitor the weather. Daniels said the weather service accurately predicted the storm and timing of its arrival at the State Fairgrounds. Unfortunately, he said, it was wind gusts well ahead of the actual storm that led to the tragedy. But those same warnings produced a very different reaction at Conner Prairie, about 15 miles northwest of the State Fair. As about 7,000 fans gathered under the summer sky and waited for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra to take the stage, an emcee from a local radio station came out and addressed the crowd. Storms were approaching, he said, and the show was being interrupted. Fans were told they should immediately head back to their vehicles. That warning came at roughly 8:15 p.m. ��� 30 minutes before the blast of wind ripped across the fairgrounds. In an email to The Indian�� apolis Star, Diane Breier, who attended the ISO concert, described the warning: ���At about 8:15 p.m. the announcer (at Conner Prairie) came back onstage and stated that with the information they had about the weather, they did not think it was safe for the crowd to continue. He asked everyone at that time to return to their cars. No ifs, For complete story, see www.hspafoundation.org Click Contests. Category judge���s comments: The Star left no stone unturned in its reporting. Division panel���s comments: The follow-up coverage of the Sugarland concert stage collapse that killed seven was comprehensive and an independent, investigative source of information that helped round out the official final report on what happened and who was responsible. Relentless digging through records, depositions and its own interviews helped The Star uncover news that helped explain to readers how it happened. Its findings were shocking. From the Sugarland duo demanding that the show go on despite severe weather warnings to the lack of clarity on who can decide to cancel or delay a performance. An outstanding example of public service journalism. Finalist panel���s comments: The Indianapolis Star���s investigation of the collapse of the stage at the state fairgrounds is an exemplary example of investigative journalism. Reporters were dogged in their pursuit of the story, always asking the tough questions ��� which eventually prompted independent investigations that affirmed many of the findings in the newspaper���s series. A great example of a newspaper carrying out its role of government watchdog. Page 7