Two Die At Rolling Stones Stage Collapse

Two members of The Rolling Stones’ stage crew were killed June 29th and two others injured while dismantling the band’s mammoth stage at Madrid’s Vicente Calderon Stadium. According to police, three of the workers fell approximately 33 feet from a metal structure, which landed on the fourth.

Both of the injured remained hospitalized at press time, with one in critical condition, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais. Local press reports said the dead workers were subcontracted but traveling with the band, while the injured were local.

About 115 people travel with the Stones and another 100 locals are subcontracted by the promoter in each country, according to the paper.

The three workers who fell were reportedly tethered to scaffolding and came down with it. The fourth was to another sections. All were wearing protective gear, according to El Pais.

Speculation at the site is that a worker may have pulled a piece acting as something of a key from the structure.

One emergency worker told El Pais that the "structure is like a puzzle, in that if you remove one piece that you shouldn’t, everything falls."

The concert’s promoter declined to elaborate about the accident while a police investigation is ongoing.

"It’s too early to make any detailed comment but it appears that something fell while the rigging was being dismantled," promoter Gay Mercader told Pollstar. "The police and local authorities began an investigation immediately and I don’t want to say any more until that’s completed and we know more."

A spokesman for the Rolling Stones told the BBC band members were "deeply saddened" to hear the news.

"Their heartfelt wishes for a speedy recovery go out to the injured and their profound sympathies to the deceased."

The Rolling Stones had performed their third concert in Spain. There is a Saturday concert scheduled in Almeria plus a Rome show before the group travels to the Eastern Bloc countries.