Father, daughter killed in tent collapse

Two people were killed and 15 others injured when a circus tent collapsed in New Hampshire during a storm on Monday night, a state fire official said. The governor’s office confirmed that the two killed were father and daughter.

Their names and ages have not been released.

At least a dozen people were taken to four area hospitals but Degnan said the extent of their injuries wasn’t clear because some went in private cars.

“The fair ground in Lancaster is around 90 miles north of the state capital in Concord”, said State Fire Marshal William Degnan. Additionally they have been speaking to survivors and witnesses.

NH1 reports that about 100 people were in the tent at the time of the collapse.

Families had just sat down to watch the 5:30 p.m. show when, at about 5:46 p.m., a severe storm ripped a tent out of the ground and sent metal poles crashing into the audience, officials said.

A Lancaster police dispatcher said the tent collapsed during a circus performance. The company did not have an immediate comment late Monday.

” ‘We will be looking at the construction of the tent and how it was set up, ‘ Degnan said”.

“Luckily enough, we all got down safe”, he said. Degnan said autopsies were being conducted.

The circus, which has visited New Hampshire in previous years, has canceled the two shows scheduled for Tuesday in Bradford, Vermont, according to its website.

The favored Lollapalooza music pageant in Chicago’s Grant Park briefly shut down Sunday afternoon because of the climate, then resumed lower than an hour later.

A man and a girl died in the collapse Monday evening. More than 30 people were transported to area hospitals.