Radiohead ‘shattered’ by drum tech’s death in stage collapse
Toronto stage collapse probe ‘fairly complex’
English rock band Radiohead released a statement on their website and Facebook page Sunday mourning the loss of their drum technician, Scott Johnson, who died when an outdoor stage collapsed before a concert in Toronto on Saturday afternoon.
“We have all been shattered by the loss of Scott Johnson, our friend and colleague,” wrote band member Philip Selway. “He was a lovely man, always positive, supportive and funny; a highly skilled and valued member of our great road crew. We will miss him very much. Our thoughts and love are with Scott’s family and all those close to him.”
The incident happened in Downsview Park, in Toronto’s northwest region, around 4 p.m. Radiohead was scheduled to perform at a sold-out concert for about 40,000 people in the park that evening.
Const. Tony Vella with the Toronto Police Service said a number of workers were on the stage getting ready for the concert when “the top portion of the stage came crashing down.”
“There were a number of peo- ple who managed to escape, but unfortunately, four people were hurt,” said Const. Vella.
Johnson was among the four. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to a spokesman for Toronto EMS paramedics. EMS said firefighters were not able to retrieve Johnson’s body until after 8 p.m.
Firefighters had to move slowly so they could safely get under the wreckage without having the stage collapse even further. Another man, 45, was taken to a trauma centre with serious head injuries after falling debris struck him in the head, and two other people sustained minor injuries, according to the EMS spokesman.
Matt Blajer, a spokesman for the Ontario Ministry of Labour said that three inspectors and two engineers spent the evening at the park scouring the wreckage of the stage and stabilizing it. The crew were back on Sunday to investigate what went wrong, whether safety regulations were followed and if staff were properly trained.
Blajer said the investigation is “fairly complex” and it could take some time to figure out exactly what happened. He said he hopes to find out the name of the company that provided the stage by Sunday night or Monday morning.