USDA reviewing camel incident at circus
An accident that injured seven people Sunday at the Shrine Circus is coming under federal scrutiny.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is looking into the Sunday incident at PPG Paints Arena, Uptown, where a startled camel began bucking as two children and a woman took a ride on the animal.
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is reviewing the matter, spokesman R. Andre Bell confirmed Monday. It was too soon to discuss precisely what triggered the department’s interest or which parties were involved in supplying the animals to the 69-year-old fundraising circus, Mr. Bell said. USDA enforces the Animal Welfare Act.
Circus chairman Paul Leavy said event organizers had no qualms with the federal review. Exactly what set off the camel remained uncertain Monday as Pittsburgh police continued an investigation as well. Mr. Leavy, in an interview, said the animal is about 3 years old and healthy but did not identify its owner.
“We’re trying to find if there was
any evidence that it was accidentally or intentionally spooked to begin to buck like it did,” Mr. Leavy said. Organizers “obviously regret that the incident happened and extend our apologies to anyone who was injured or impacted by the event.”
He called it the first such accident in the circus’ history. Six children and one adult were hurt about 3:30 p.m. after the camel bucked and picked up speed on the main arena floor, according to the city. It took handlers about 11 seconds to regain control of the animal, the Pittsburgh Department of Public Safety said.
The worst injury was a child’s fractured arm; the others were minor, the department said. The conditions of those hurt weren’t available Monday.
“Any time you’re working with exotic animals, there’s a certain level of risk,” Mayor Bill Peduto said. Asked whether any local regulation might stem from the incident, he said it was too early to know.
“It really depends on the cause, not simply the effect” of what happened, Mr. Peduto said.
The trouble arose during what event organizers have said may be the last Shrine Circus in Pittsburgh. An animal treatment law passed by city council in December jeopardizes the circus, the biggest single fundraiser for the Syria Shrine, Mr. Leavy has said.
Specifically, the regulation bans using any painful instruments, or instruments that could be painful, on or around wild and exotic animals. A courtgranted exception allowed this year’s Shrine Circus to go on while the Shriners challenge the law through litigation. They have maintained that insurance coverage requires the presence of bullhooks — a pointed hook atop a long handle — around elephants, but only as guides.
Mr. Leavy said he didn’t believe the new rule would have altered conditions surrounding the camel during the accident Sunday. He described it as a domesticated animal that was on a lead and not performing. Video from a witness shows workers chasing and then surrounding the camel as it slows and stops.
No tools were present, Mr. Leavy said.
“The ordinance was more of a protection for the animals against the use of instruments which would cause harm,” Mr. Peduto said.
City council President Bruce Kraus, who championed the legislation, said it was speculative to ask whether the regulation could have prevented the mishap. But the accident didn’t surprise him, he said.
“This is an unnatural environment for these animals. These are God’s creatures,” Mr. Kraus said. “Their lives were never intended to be somehow packaged as entertainment for public consumption.”