Almost a year after the disastrous stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair, it continues to generate reports, lawsuits and finger pointing. What it has not done is actually improve the safety of outdoor temporary staging structures or create standards that would insure the safe installation of these facilities.
Dealing with a similar, though perhaps not weather related, fatal stage collapse in Israel last month, authorities moved swiftly to arrest four technicians involved with the set up and charge them with negligence.
While the way this incident was handled in Israel may have been driven by the fact that the person killed was a Israeli military officer, it still points to the idea that the only way to really make any progress on this front is hold individuals accountable for their involvement in the disaster.
While the Indiana incident has led to the creation of a safety alliance and generated a report pointing to something called “ambiguity of authority” as being responsible for the deaths and injuries suffered, the response in Israel has been to hold those who did the work accountable and to address their alleged negligence as a criminal act.
While the U.S. staging industry tries to “meet” itself into a safer way to do business, Israel has chosen to insure that those who are not qualified or not careful will simply not be able to keep their jobs (or perhaps, their freedom).
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