Five high-wire performers at Circus Sarasota were seriously injured Wednesday after falling during a rehearsal.
The performers fell from the high wire and were injured while practicing an eight-person pyramid for the circus, which is scheduled to open Friday.
Chief Micheal Regnier of Sarasota County Emergency Services called the incident a “tragedy.”
All those injured from the 20- to 25-foot fall were taken to local hospitals, Regnier said. Four people were trauma alerts. One additional injured person was taken to the hospital, but not as a trauma. There were no fatalities. Circus officials hope they will be back on their feet in a few months.
“Accidents do happen, as we know,” Pedro Reis, co-founder and CEO of The Circus Arts Conservatory, said in a press conference. “Circus artists, sometimes we compare ourselves to NASCAR drivers, Formula One drivers, we push the limit.”
Three of the injured performers were taken to one area hospital, one was taken to Blake Hospital and another to Lakewood Ranch Medical Center.
Doctors at the hospital said two people are in critical condition, and are “considered life-threatening.” One person was in the operating room at the time the doctor addressed the media.
Doctors described the injuries as “mostly orthopedic,” and a “traumatic brain injury.” However, all of them are expected to survive and “do very well.”
Nik Wallenda, a famed “sky-walk” performer who was part of the act at Circus Sarasota, was not one of the injured performers, officials confirmed Wednesday. Wallenda was on the high wire at the time of the incident but did not fall. He was expected to be an anchor in the pyramid, according to Reis.
Reis said it was not the first time the group has attempted the act and it was performed “flawlessly” in rehearsal Tuesday.
“I will tell you that the show must go on. This is not the first accident, obviously. Accidents happen,” Reis said.
Reis could not say exactly what happened, but said performers lost their balance. The rigging, he emphasized, did not collapse.
The eight-person trick would be a record-setting one at that height if completed, according to Reis. It was being practiced as the final act of the show.
Reis said they will go to “plan B” and come up with a new ending, but said the show will go on.
“I’m sure they’ll be back on their feet in a few months,” Reis said. “Our hearts to go out to everybody and to Nik.”
Circus Sarasota, the city’s professional resident circus, and its parent organization The Circus Arts Conservatory, celebrates its 20th year in 2017. The circus tents are set up near the Mall at University Town Center.
A majority of ticket revenue goes to helping community outreach programing, according to The Circus Arts Conservatory website.
Winter performances for Circus Sarasota are set to begin this week, continuing through March 5, according to the website.
In 1962, a fall during a Wallenda family performance for the Shrine Circus at the State Fair Coliseum in Detroit Michigan, killed two performers and paralyzed another, according to Circuses and Sideshows website.
Hannah Morse and Jessica DeLeon contributed to this report.
Sara Nealeigh: 941-745-7081, @saranealeigh
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