Six crew members working an Ed Sheeran concert in Detroit were taken to hospital after a piece of stage equipment struck them, in an accident that happened after the audience had gone home. The crews were dismantling the stage at Ford Field on the night of 29 August when the equipment hit several of them.
Fire department dispatch audio, reported by Click On Detroit, recorded crews being sent to the stadium at around 11pm local time for what was described as a forklift injury accident. The workers are believed to have been near a ramp in a vehicle tunnel, walking away to go on break, when the equipment lost control.
None of the six suffered life-threatening injuries. Two were reported to be in serious condition and four in stable condition, and one of the group was kept in hospital overnight. What exactly failed, and which piece of equipment was involved, was not immediately clear.
Ford Field addressed the incident in a statement issued through The Independent, saying the stadium had begun a full review and was cooperating with the authorities and the event's production partners. "Out of respect for the people involved and the integrity of that review, we will not speculate on the cause," the statement said.
Sheeran himself had not commented publicly on the accident. He was in San Francisco the following night, appearing as a surprise guest at the Pokemon World Championships at the Chase Center, where he performed his 2022 song Celestial before an acoustic run through the original anime theme.
The Detroit date is part of a US run that continues at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, and the incident is a reminder of where the risk in stadium touring actually sits: not in the show, but in the hours around it, when a crew is moving several tonnes of steel in the dark. Sheeran's remaining dates are listed on the tour guide, and the accident lands in a pop touring season built on stadium-scale production.
The facts
- Six crew members were taken to hospital after the accident at Ford Field.
- It happened on 29 August as crews dismantled the stage after the concert.
- Fire dispatch audio described a forklift injury accident around 11pm local time.
- Two patients were reported in serious condition and four in stable condition.
- None of the injuries was life-threatening; one worker was kept in overnight.
- Ford Field says it has begun a full review and is cooperating with authorities.
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