Woman injured at Geelong Crowded House concert as clean-up continues after muddy chaos
A Crowded House fan says she broke her ankle in two places at Saturday’s chaotic mud-hit show as promoters say the venue still plans to host The Killers in three weeks.
Geelong
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A Crowded House fan says she broke her ankle during Saturday’s chaotic mud-hit Geelong concert as promoters say plans are still in place to host The Killers at the same venue in three weeks.
The owners of Mt Duneed Estate were left with a massive clean-up after dozens of vehicles were left bogged after wet and stormy conditions on Saturday night.
Fans took to social media on Sunday to slam organisers for holding the event despite 102km/h gusts of winds.
The estate’s co-owner, Christine Whelan, said the event had been carefully planned with checks of the grounds ahead of the show. But extremely heavy rain meant things went from “bad to worse”.
Brooke Hallam made it through Crowded House’s soaked set but said she was standing in ankle-deep mud when another man ran up and gave her a bear hug.
The 42-year-old from Melbourne said she ended up on the ground in excruciating pain.
“I snapped my fibula in two places. I got a plate and some screws put in. I’ll be in a cast for weeks,” Ms Hallam said from her bed at Geelong hospital on Monday.
Ms Hallam said she had made the decision to go to the concert despite but the weather, but said she was “frustrated” by the lack of emergency vehicle access.
“They (the medics) said they can’t get a wheelchair or a vehicle in here,” she said.
“I hobbled up through the mud to somewhere to get in the ambulance.
She said the entire ground was a “mud pit”.
“I don’t care that I fell over in the mud … to not have any sort of vehicle access (is concerning). I had to walk 80m on a broken leg.”
A Roundhouse Entertainment spokeswoman said A Day on the Green had received less than 100 complaints and had been dealing with each on a “case-by-case basis”.
“Pre-show communication was sent at 5pm Friday. While the majority of patrons did the right thing there were some people who didn’t follow the park-and-ride instructions and turned up at the venue,” the spokeswoman said.
“There was also a lock on a paddock gate that was broken and people parked there, including some that were not 4WDs. All cars were towed out with assistance from locals, Mount Duneed and ADOTG staff.
“While the area designated for 4WD parking was deemed safe when we opened the gates, the rain on show day exceeded what was forecast, deteriorating the carpark condition during the day.”
The spokeswoman said emergency vehicles and first aid stations were on site.
She said the sold out The Killers show was expected to go ahead at the site on December 10.
“We will assess the site closer to the show with all stakeholders, including emergency services and police,” she said.
There is no plan to move the show at this point in time.
Ms Whelan said the damage to the ground was extensive but expected it to recover ahead of December 10 performance.
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