Officials Seek Cause Of Railing Collapse At Snoop Dogg Concert

CAMDEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Engineers were trying to figure out what caused a railing to collapse at an amphitheater during a Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa concert, injuring 42 people.

It happened at Camden's BB&T Pavilion, an outdoor venue with an indoor seating section and open lawn seating.

A partition separating the lawn from a secondary stage set up at the rear of the seating section collapsed around 10:30 p.m. Friday, causing people to fall roughly 10 feet onto the concrete below.

The collapse occurred as the rappers were gesturing to fans to come toward the small stage, officials said. As people rushed toward the railing, it collapsed. Cell phone video from backstage showed the moment the railing gave way.

Witnesses said it was a terrifying moment.

"Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa came really close to the lawn and everyone all of a sudden started pushing and the gate broke," said concert goer Abbey Hecht. "All of a sudden, I literally fell like six or seven feet and I luckily fell on top of someone, so I didn't hit the concrete, but there were maybe four or five people on top of me. It was so hard to breathe. I couldn't move, I literally thought I was dying. It was so scary."

Concertgoer Katie Colbridge said the show, which was about halfway finished, stopped abruptly when the accident happened. The performers were ushered from the stage moments after the collapse, and the show was later canceled.

An announcer urged the audience to remain calm as police and medics tended to the injured.

Live Nation, which operates the venue, announced Saturday that it had "secured'' the impacted section of railing. The company also said in a statement that it was working with authorities and structural engineers to determine the cause of the collapse.

It said an "I Love the 90s " concert Saturday, featuring Salt N Pepa, Vanilla Ice and other performers, and a Sunday show by Fifth Harmony would go on as planned.

Snoop Dogg also posted a message on Twitter Saturday, offering prayers to his fans and wishing those hurt "a quick recovery."

Camden County officials said a person who suffered an upper body injury in the collapse was hospitalized overnight and released on Saturday morning.

Forty-one other people were treated for bruises and other minor injuries, though some had broken bones. Some Live Nation employees were among the injured, the company said.

Camden city spokesman Vincent Basara said city fire crews and inspectors responded to the scene and were there Saturday morning. They were working to stabilize the railing where the collapse occurred and determine what repairs would be needed.

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