A woman who watched helplessly as a big-top tent collapsed during a circus performance Monday in New Hampshire – killing two people – said there was no warning before the day of fun turned tragic.
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A downpour had started in Lancaster, New Hampshire, and the open flaps on the side of the circus tent that weren’t tied down “started going insane”, said spectator Brandon Isham in an interview with CNN affiliate WGME.
Fire Marshal William Degnan said it was the first time his agency had investigated a tent collapse.
About 20 of those attended were injured and a father and his daughter died due to blunt force trauma.
A New Hampshire State Police helicopter was brought in to identify the track of Monday’s storm and also to provide aerial photos of the site where the circus tent stood.
Governor Maggie Hassan said the State Emergency Operations Center had been activated and a Disaster Behavioral Response Team is on their way to the scene. Their identities will be held until their families are notified.
The company, based in Sarasota, Fla., has been cooperating with investigators, Degnan said.
“The investigation is a fact-finding mission”, Degnan said, “and at this time there’s no indication that there will be any kind of charges”. “And, that’s one of the things that we’re looking into”, Degnan said.
“Obviously, this did coincide with a severe weather event, so we’re trying to make sure that we can understand all aspects of it”, she said.
Degnan didn’t release the names of the dead, only describing them as a “young man and a young girl”. Degnan said autopsies were being conducted.
The storm moved in quickly with winds reaching up to 60 miles an hour.
About 30 more people were injured and required hospitalization, the fire marshal said, adding some of the injuries were serious. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the area at 5:23 p.m. The collapse happened at about 5:46 p.m., according to the fire marshal. They were taken to four regional hospitals and their conditions were not immediately known.
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Associated Press writer Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this report.
