School official: Truck causes concrete awning collapse at band competition, at least 12 hurt

OLIN, N.C. – At least a dozen students were hurt when a box truck struck a concrete support for an awning at a North Carolina high school and part of the overhang collapsed Saturday, authorities said.

Iredell-Statesville Schools spokeswoman Susie Wiberg said students were beneath the awning at the entrance to a high school where they were gathering for a band competition in Olin, a community about 50 miles north of Charlotte.

Emergency personnel responded and treated the students at the scene at North Iredell High School after the collapse, reported about 2 p.m.

Wiberg said the event, the Foothills Invitational Marching Band Competition, was cancelled following the accident. She said the event normally attracts bands from 30 schools, but she said several schools pulled out of this year’s competition because of rainy weather.

Iredell-Statesville Schools Superintendent Brady Johnson told The Charlotte Observer ( http://bit.ly/1OewW2T ) that rescue crews removed several of the injured from debris. He told the paper the injured had been walking into the main entrance of the school when concrete came down.

News photos on the paper’s online site showed fire and police surrounding a truck near the school entrance and a section of what appeared to be collapsed debris from the awning. Yellow caution tape surrounded the scene.