Mid-Air Performance Gone Wrong- Chinese Acrobat Falls to Death
A Chinese Acrobat has fallen to her death during an aerial skills performance with her husband.
The acrobat, surnamed Sun fell to the stage while performing a mid-air routine on Saturday with her husband in a village near the city of Suzhou in central Anhui province.
According to CNN, the tragic incident sparked horror and outcry on social media over the lack of safety measures.
However, the Tongqiao district government stated in a statement on Monday that she was taken to hospital but died of her injuries.
The Incident:
In a viral footage shows the couple were pulled high into the air by a crane above a large outdoor stage, with the woman holding on to her husband whose arms were wrapped around two pieces of fabric hanging from the crane.
As they swung in mid-air, the woman wrapped her arms around her husband’s head and hung off him during a transition act. But she lost her grip and and plunged to the hard stage amid screams from the crowd. Her husband attempted to catch her with his legs but failed, the footage showed.
Many users questioned why the woman did not wear any safety belt, and why there was no safety net or crash mat on the ground. Others called for stricter regulations on the acrobatic industry and better protection for performers.
“This kind of mid-air acrobatic performance is really dangerous. At least put a safety net underneath so the (performer) can be protected from falling,” said a comment on China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform. “No matter how skilled the performers are, there will always be mistakes. How come there are no safety measures?”
In another statement released on Tuesday, the Tongqiao government revealed through an investigation by authorities that the tragic event was an accident.
It further indicated that the host, a local farm business owner, had contracted the Anhui Yaxi Performing Arts Media Company to run the performance, but failed to obtain approval from authorities prior to the show, and also failed to provide essential safety protection and emergency measures during the performance, the investigation found.
The Tongqiao government also stated that although the company has reached an agreement on compensation with the family of the acrobat, it will still be punished according to regulations; adding in the statement that the use of a crane in the performance was also a violation of regulations.
The female victim was married to her husband for more than a decade, leaving behind two children.
Source: CNN
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