Alexisonfire Olympic Show Stopped After Fans Rush Stage, 20 Injured

Alexisonfire singer-guitarist Dallas Green recently told Spinner he was expecting the lead up to the band's February 16 show at LiveCity Yaletown as part of the Vancouver Olympics Cultural Olympiad to be slightly chaotic, but the outspoken musician assumed that the actual performance would be "just another show." And it was, at least until hundreds of fans surged the stage.

Only seconds into their set, an overzealous crowd rushed to the front and broke through a barricade separating the crowd from the St. Catharines, On. punks. Reports confirm that as many as 20 people were injured in the event, which caused the concert to be canceled and 7,000 people evacuated.



Vancouver city manager Penny Ballem spoke to media late Tuesday night following the incident, stating that most of the concertgoers hurt in the surge suffered only minor injuries, adding that one fan may have broken their leg. Ballem called the event "unprecedented" and insists that organizers are actively seeking a replacement barrier and are looking at the possibility safety improvements.

Alexisonfire apologized and promised to return to Vancouver as soon as possible. Today, they posted a further apology to their Myspace page.:

"We always take great care in the safety of our fans and are saddened that this happened. We are sincerely sorry that people were injured. We want to thank the security team, paramedics and police for their quick reaction. We especially want to thank our fans for cooperating and not making a bad situation worse."