Moment of silence for stage collapse victims

INDIANAPOLIS (WANE/AP)  The Indiana State Fair came to a standstill Monday night to honor the victims of a deadly stage collapse one year ago.
  
All activities stopped from 8:46 p.m. to 8:50 p.m. to commemorate the seven people killed and dozens injured on August 13, 2011, when strong winds sent the stage crashing onto a crowd of fans awaiting a concert by country duo Sugarland.

One of those who died was Fort Wayne native Alina BigJohny.

Her sister, Christy Collins, was among the dozens who gathered Monday night at a memorial plaque under the grandstand.

"I've had butterflies in my stomach all day. Last time we came up here, we didn't know she had passed. We were just coming up here to find her, because we knew the stage had fell. It's not really a good feeling, but definitely wanted to come and show my support for my sister but for all the victims and their families," said Collins.
 
The collapse spurred key changes at the fair after two investigations found that the stage rigging wasn't strong enough to meet state building codes and that the fair lacked a fully developed emergency plan. In June the fair board unanimously approved a 425-page emergency management plan that adopted recommendations made by consultant Witt Associates and formalizing procedures that already were in place but not used the night that the grandstand collapsed.

State lawmakers also approved a measure requiring inspections of temporary stages at the site until 2014. They plan to meet next month to study permanent regulations.

Indiana has already paid $5 million to victims of the collapse and has added $6 million to a proposed $7.2 million settlement from stage owner Mid-America Sound Corp. and James Thomas Engineering. That payment, which requires victims to agree not to sue, is pending approval from the two companies.
 
Lawsuits over the collapse are pending in Indianapolis. A judge has ordered all sides to enter mediation in hopes of reaching a settlement by the end of 2013.