At least 12 hurt in Indiana school stage collapse

A still from video taken by Zach Rader shows students performing in the grand finale prior to the stage collapse. Picture: AP

Police captain Charles Hollowell said the stage gave way at Westfield High School, about 20 miles north of Indianapolis.

A large group of youngsters were on the stage during the grand finale of American Pie when the floor collapsed.

According to local media outlet WTHR, one of the injured had struck her head on a beam when the stage collapsed. Her condition has been upgraded from critical and initial scans have been positive.

Westfield Mayor Andy Cook visited three of the injured students, and said they were in ‘great spirits’ while their injuries were ‘light’.

He added: “When I got there, I was very impressed with our first responders.”

One pupil at the school told WTHR that all the people on stage were students, adding that he saw one student with a suspected broken leg.

He said: “Nobody was expecting this. Everyone was seriously excited about it. It was a hyped up performance.”

Another witness, Zach Rader - who recorded video of the incident - said that people were ‘in shock’.

He added: “When it first happened, I completely forgot I was recording. But when I realised it was a real situation and people were actually hurt and it wasn’t planned, then I cut it. That was when the police officers started showing up.”

Stacy McGuire, Westfield High School principal, said on Twitter: “Support will be available to any student...Please keep our students staff and families in your thoughts. Rocks are strong.”

Westfield High School is a public school with between 1900 and 2050 students.

Notable alumni include Major League Soccer player Eriq Zavaleta and New York Mets catcher Kevin Plawecki.