INDIANAPOLIS – Court documents released Wednesday detail a chaotic decision-making process that was controlled largely by country duo Sugarland’s representatives as a severe storm approached the Indiana State Fair last August.
High winds eventually toppled the stage rigging, killing seven and injuring dozens of others.
The Indiana Department of Labor on Wednesday cited three entities for workplace violations, including Mid-America Sound Corp. of Greenfield. The business owned and constructed the load-bearing roof.
Mid-America responded by releasing contracts showing the Indiana State Fair Commission knew the structure couldn’t withstand high winds.
Company officials also made public eight pages of a 100-plus page deposition of State Fair Executive Director Cindy Hoye taken as part of a civil lawsuit.
The Jan. 16 deposition provides the first in-depth understanding of the discussions going on that night about whether to delay or cancel the show.
Hoye said there was a meeting between 8 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. in which she asked Eric Milby – from concert promoter Dave Lucas Entertainment – to talk to the band about the fair requesting a delay in the show.
Sugarland was set to go on at 8:45 p.m. for a 90-minute show.
Initially, the storm was supposed to hit about 9:15 p.m. but it came earlier, knocking the rigging down at 8:49 p.m.
Milby returned and told Hoye the band had concerns about a delay because it takes lead singer Jennifer Nettles 30 minutes to warm up. He also said the band needed to get to Iowa the next day to play the Iowa State Fair and did not want to delay.
“Would it be fair to say that you had requested that the show be delayed, but Sugarland had refused, through Mr. Milby, to delay the show?” the deposition said.
Hoye’s answer: “Correct.”
Milby was then asked to go back a second time about 8:15 p.m. and ask again for a delay.
Hoye said she thinks Milby offered to pay for extra stage hands in Iowa and suggested reducing the set time as encouragement for the band to accept a delay.
But the band wanted to play, according to the deposition.
Also after the second request, Hoye got pulled into a separate situation backstage related to “Sugarland’s production people” being upset there were so many state police officers backstage who were bringing people through the area who weren’t designated to be there.
Hoye stepped away from tracking the storm front and the discussion to delay the concert to deal with that situation.
Mid-America did not release the rest of the deposition.
Indiana Labor Commissioner Lori Torres said Wednesday the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration looked into whether Sugarland should be cited and determined the group had no responsibility with regards to workplace standards.
She did note, however, that is different from liability to the public at large.
Deputy Labor Commissioner Jeff Carter said Sugarland had the right in its contract to refuse to go on.
An email sent to Sugarland’s tour manager seeking comment was not immediately answered Wednesday.
