Big Valley Jamboree bolsters stage after death

A year after a deadly storm ripped through the Big Valley Jamboree music festival in Camrose, Alta., the show is getting ready to go on with new safety procedures in place.

The country music showcase's producers have buttressed their main venue to try to prevent a disaster like last year's, when a massive storm suddenly ripped through the area and knocked down the principal outdoor stage, killing one woman and injuring 75 others.

The powerful winds last Aug. 1 caught thousands of festival-goers by surprise. Organizers had a minute's notice that the torrent of hail and rain was on its way.

This year, organizers said, they are not taking any chances.

"We're putting some more ballast on the stage as a precautionary measure, and then we're also putting some 45-degree back braces," said Larry Werner, the Big Valley Jamboree producer. "But as to the actual design and everything with the stage, it's safe and secure as it was."

Werner said the festival couldn't have designed things differently last year, barring advanced warning of the wind storm that pummelled the site.

"We had a 60-second warning, and what do you do with 60 seconds? You know It's physically impossible."

2 investigations ordered

One of two reports ordered by the province into what happened said the high winds far exceeded what the stage structure was required to handle.

But it also said the wreckage was so extensive that experts could not determine what actually caused the heavy, portable stage to collapse.

A separate investigation into how the stage was assembled and whether the jamboree was a safe worksite is almost complete but may not be finished until after the summer festival season.

Alberta has already said it does not plan to toughen its building code for outdoor stages as a result of the fatal collapse at the Big Valley Jamboree.

But the government said it would have inspectors on hand this week as the festival erects its main stage and added it is working to establish a permit system for stages at major events.

The 18th annual Big Valley Jamboree runs Thursday to Sunday and is expected to draw nearly 100,000 fans to see musical acts such as Keith Urban and Martina McBride.