Radiohead Stage Collapse
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On 16 June 2012, the stage collapsed during the setup for a concert by the English rock band
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
in
Downsview Park Downsview Park () is a large urban park located in the Downsview, Toronto, Downsview neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The park's name is officially Bilingualism in Canada, bilingual due to it being federally owned and managed, and was ...
in Toronto, Canada. A drum technician, Scott Johnson, was killed, and three other members of Radiohead's road crew were injured. Radiohead and other musicians offered tributes and condolences. In June 2013, Live Nation Canada Inc, two other organisations and an engineer were charged with 13 charges under Ontario health and safety laws. The hearing began in June 2015, but a mistrial was declared after the judge was appointed to
Ontario Superior Court The Superior Court of Justice (French: ''Cour supérieure de justice'') is a superior court in Ontario. The Court sits in 52 locations across the province, including 17 Family Court locations, and consists of over 300 federally appointed judges ...
and lost
jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...
. The case was dropped in September 2017 under the Jordan ruling, which puts time limits on cases. Radiohead condemned the decision. In 2019, a Canadian inquest found that the roof had not been strong enough to support the stage equipment and returned a verdict of
accidental death An accidental death is an unnatural death that is caused by an accident, such as a slip and fall, traffic collision, or accidental poisoning. Accidental deaths are distinguished from death by natural causes, disease, and from intentional homici ...
. Later that year, a British inquest found that inadequate technical advice and construction techniques had caused Johnson's death. In 2020,
Professional Engineers Ontario Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO; known until 1993 as the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario, APEO) is a self-regulatory body that licenses and governs Ontario's professional engineers. PEO was created on June 15, 1922. It has a ...
found the engineer Domenic Cugliari guilty of professional misconduct and revoked his license.


Collapse

On 16 June 2012, the English rock band
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
were due to perform the final concert of their 2012 North American tour in support of their eighth album, ''
The King of Limbs ''The King of Limbs'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Radiohead. It was self-released on 18 February 2011 as a download, followed by a physical release on 28 March through XL Recordings internationally and TBD Records in Nor ...
'', in
Downsview Park Downsview Park () is a large urban park located in the Downsview, Toronto, Downsview neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The park's name is officially Bilingualism in Canada, bilingual due to it being federally owned and managed, and was ...
, Toronto. The tour had extensive visual components and required 11 trucks to transport its equipment. Radiohead were due to be on stage for the
soundcheck A soundcheck is the preparation that takes place before a concert, speech, or similar performance to adjust the sound on the venue's sound reinforcement or public address system. The performer and the audio engineers run through a small po ...
, but construction of the temporary stage was behind schedule. The band members were sequestered nearby while their road crew prepared equipment. The weather was calm, with light winds forecast. At 2pm, Radiohead’s business manager Ade Bullock noticed that scaffolding on the stage appeared to be drooping, and took a photograph. He did not challenge it as he was not knowledgeable about engineering. At 4pm, an hour before gates were due to open to concertgoers, the stage roof collapsed. Radiohead's drummer,
Philip Selway Philip James Selway (born 23 May 1967) is an English musician and the drummer of the rock band Radiohead. He combines rock drumming with electronic percussion. Selway was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Radiohead in ...
, recalled a sound "like an enormous cabinet of glasses falling over". Radiohead's drum technician, Scott Johnson, was killed instantly by a falling video monitor weighing . Three other members of Radiohead's crew were injured, one seriously. The band's light show and much of their musical equipment was also destroyed. The concert was cancelled and Radiohead's European tour was postponed. Radiohead considered abandoning touring after the collapse. Selway said: "When we came away, it was, 'God, do we want to do this ever again?' If it causes this, ''can'' we do it?" They decided to continue as a way of dealing with the trauma. Three weeks later, at a vigil before their next performance, Radiohead offered their crew the chance to leave; all chose to stay. In 2013, the singer,
Thom Yorke Thomas Edward Yorke (born 7 October 1968) is an English musician who is the vocalist and main songwriter of the rock band Radiohead. He plays guitar, bass, keyboards and other instruments, and is noted for his falsetto. ''Rolling Stone'' desc ...
, wrote that completing the tour was his biggest achievement: "I was terrified about it, then it got dark, but in the end we were all very proud of managing to pull it off." ''
Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...
'' described the collapse as part of a streak of stage accidents, such as the 2011
Indiana State Fair stage collapse The Indiana State Fair stage collapse was an incident during an August 13, 2011, outdoor concert by Sugarland as part of their Incredible Machine Tour at the Indiana State Fair in which a wind gust from an approaching severe thunderstorm hit t ...
, that had prompted "industry soul-searching".


Tributes

Radiohead's drum technician, Scott Johnson, 33, from
Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...
, South Yorkshire, had also worked with acts including
Robyn Robin Miriam Carlsson (; born 12 June 1979), known professionally as Robyn (), is a Swedish singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. Her 1995 debut album ''Robyn Is Here'' produced two Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 10 single ...
, the Killers, Keane and White Lies. Shortly after the collapse, Selway wrote a tribute on Radiohead's website, describing him as "a lovely man, always positive, supportive and funny; a highly skilled and valued member of our great road crew". Other tributes came from artists including Keane, White Lies and
Caribou The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represe ...
, the Canadian band set to open for Radiohead.
Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...
called Johnson's family to offer his condolences. All of Radiohead and their road crew attended Johnson's funeral. In July, Radiohead paid tribute to Johnson at their first concert after the collapse, in Nîmes, France, performing their song " Reckoner" as an
encore An encore is an additional performance given by performers at the conclusion of a show or concert, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford Universi ...
while screens showed images of Johnson. Selway's second solo album, '' Weatherhouse'' (2014), and Radiohead's ninth album, ''
A Moon Shaped Pool ''A Moon Shaped Pool'' is the ninth studio album by the English rock band Radiohead. It was released digitally on 8 May 2016, with a retail release on 17 June 2016 through XL Recordings. It was produced by Radiohead's longtime collaborator Nigel ...
'' (2016)'','' are dedicated to Johnson. Johnson's parents used royalties from Keane's charity EP ''Upstairs At United – Vol. 5'', along with almost £3500 raised by Radiohead fans and £1200 of church and family donations, to create the Scott Johnson Bursary Fund. The fund distributes
drum kit A drum kit or drum set (also known as a trap set, or simply drums in popular music and jazz contexts) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and sometimes other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one p ...
s to schools and teachers with help from
Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: People * Torakusu Yamaha, a Japanese businessman and founder of the Yamaha Corporation Companies * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese musical instrument and audio equipment manufacturer ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organi ...
and the music shop where Johnson once worked. In 2015, Selway, Stephen Morris of New Order and
Guy Garvey Guy Edward John Patrick Garvey (born 6 March 1974) is an English musician, singer, songwriter and radio presenter. He is the lead singer and lyricist of the rock band Elbow. He has a weekly show on BBC Radio 6 Music titled ''Guy Garvey's Fines ...
of
Elbow The elbow is the region between the upper arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and t ...
presented a drum kit in Johnson's honour to the
Manchester Central Library Manchester Central Library is the headquarters of the city's library and information service in Manchester, England. Facing St Peter's Square, it was designed by E. Vincent Harris and constructed between 1930 and 1934. The form of the build ...
.


Legal proceedings


2015 trial

In June 2013, after a year-long investigation, the
Ontario Ministry of Labour The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development is responsible for labour (economics), labour issues in the Canadian province of Ontario. The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development and its agencies ...
charged Live Nation Canada Inc, Live Nation Ontario Concerts GP Inc, Optex Staging & Services Inc and the engineer who designed the stage, Domenic Cugliari, with 13 charges under Ontario health and safety laws. The prosecutor, Dave McCaskill, sought to prove that Cugliari miscalculated the weight of the stage roof and its attachments by approximately . Live Nation issued a statement denying any wrongdoing and vowing to "vigorously" defend itself. The hearing was set to begin in June 2015, but was postponed to November as Optex had no lawyer; the Optex president, Dale Martin, eventually represented himself. All defendants pleaded not guilty. After 15 days of hearings, during which Radiohead's managers and crew gave evidence, the court ordered another 15 days throughout 2016. In May 2016, following the defence's request for more time to present its case, the court scheduled further dates in December and January. In June, the defence persuaded the judge, Shaun Nakatsuru, to drop two charges against Live Nation and one charge against Optex for lack of evidence. In June 2017, Nakatsuru declared a mistrial as he had been appointed to the
Ontario Superior Court The Superior Court of Justice (French: ''Cour supérieure de justice'') is a superior court in Ontario. The Court sits in 52 locations across the province, including 17 Family Court locations, and consists of over 300 federally appointed judges ...
and had lost
jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...
. As a new trial would not have begun until May 2018, the new judge, Ann Nelson, ruled in favour of the defendants' application to have the case dropped under the Jordan ruling, which gives defendants the right to be tried within a "reasonable" timeframe. Nakatsuru had declined a previous application from the defence. Radiohead released a statement saying: "We are appalled by the decision … This is an insult to the memory of Scott Johnson, his parents and our crew. It offers no consolation, closure or assurance that this kind of accident will not happen again." Radiohead's management and Johnson's parents met British members of parliament, who wrote to the Canadian High Commission demanding the case be reopened. On 19 July 2018, Radiohead performed at
Scotiabank Arena Scotiabank Arena (SBA), formerly known as Air Canada Centre (ACC), is a multi-purposed arena located on Bay Street in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the home of the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and t ...
, their first performance in Toronto since the collapse. On stage, Yorke condemned the lack of progress in the case. Radiohead held a
minute of silence Minuta Molchanya () known for its full title as To the Bright Memory of the Fallen in the Fight Against Fascism () is an annual simultaneous broadcast aired at 18:00 UTC annually on 9 May dedicated to the victims of Great Patriotic War. It broa ...
before performing their final song, the 1997 single "
Karma Police "Karma Police" is a song by the English Rock music, rock band Radiohead, released on 25 August 1997 as the second single from their third studio album, ''OK Computer'' (1997). It features acoustic guitar and piano, and lyrical themes of insani ...
". The ''
Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...
'' journalist Jill Krajewski observed new meaning in the lyrics "karma police / arrest this man". Yorke said in September 2019:


2019 inquests

In November 2017, it was announced that the chief coroner of Ontario, Dirk Huyer, would hold an inquest into Johnson's death. In a statement, Radiohead welcomed the inquest but said it would provide no justice for the Johnsons, and urged the Canadian authorities to reopen the case. The inquest began on 25 March 2019 and ran until April 10, with testimonies from 25 witnesses, including Selway, Optex employees and Johnson's father. Optex president Dale Martin testified that the stage design had called for a
truss A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as Beam (structure), beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure. In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so ...
component that Optex did not have, that Optex staff had known about the problem for years, and that he had alerted engineer Cugliari many times. Cugliari admitted that his design contained errors, but said that he believed Optex had used the required truss. No building permits or inspections were obtained for the stage because Downsview Park is on land owned by the federal government. Ontario's
building code A building code (also building control or building regulations) is a set of rules that specify the standards for construction objects such as buildings and non-building structures. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permis ...
does not apply to federal land, and no third-party oversight is required for temporary structures. The inquest heard that the roof grid was not strong enough to bear the load of lights, screens and speakers, which weighed roughly and crushed the pickup trusses. The roof design had been used since around 1990, and was originally approved by the engineer George Snowden, who was deceased by the time of the collapse. Snowden had been disciplined by
Professional Engineers Ontario Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO; known until 1993 as the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario, APEO) is a self-regulatory body that licenses and governs Ontario's professional engineers. PEO was created on June 15, 1922. It has a ...
for his role in the fatal collapse of a scaffold on the
Ambassador Bridge The Ambassador Bridge is an international suspension bridge across the Detroit River that connects Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, United States, with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1929, the toll bridge is the busiest international border cros ...
in 2000. Cugliari, who was an associate of Snowden, was also involved in the Ambassador Bridge collapse. Only Martin admitted culpability for the stage collapse, saying: "The system failed. Not just the truss. My people. Me. I'm responsible." The five-person jury proposed 28 non-binding recommendations, including the creation of a group to develop and maintain standards and procedures for the live performance industry. A verdict of
accidental death An accidental death is an unnatural death that is caused by an accident, such as a slip and fall, traffic collision, or accidental poisoning. Accidental deaths are distinguished from death by natural causes, disease, and from intentional homici ...
was returned. Radiohead released a statement praising the inquest as "constructive, thorough and fair-minded". In October 2019, a second inquest was held in Johnson's hometown of Doncaster. The coroner, Nicola Mundy, found that inadequate technical advice and construction techniques were responsible for Johnson's death. Radiohead released a statement asking for "those others responsible to finally and publicly admit their part in this terrible incident".


2020 professional misconduct hearing

In November 2020, following a hearing, Professional Engineers Ontario found Cugliari guilty of professional misconduct and said he had not properly reviewed the stage construction. His license was revoked and the company that had authorised the construction was fined $5,000. In a statement, Radiohead said Cugliari had "acknowledged a catalogue of errors and negligence on his part". They said the admissions were eight years too late, as Cugliari had retired and was "seemingly beyond any legal recrimination".


References

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