At least one person was killed and several others wounded after a large tent collapsed during an outdoor event at EastLake Community Church in southern Virginia on Friday night, a Bedford County spokeswoman said.
The church, in the town of Moneta, was hosting a free concert and outdoor service when a severe storm brought heavy rain, lightning and strong winds to the area, causing the tent to collapse just before 7 p.m., the spokeswoman, Shelley Basinger, said.
At least 11 people were transported to hospitals, while 11 others were treated for minor injuries at the church. The names of victims have not yet been released.
“Our church family suffered a great tragedy tonight,” Troy Keaton, an EastLake pastor, said in a statement posted on social media around 9:30 p.m. Friday.
The tent had passed an inspection on Tuesday conducted by Bedford County officials, Ms. Basinger said.
Several local authorities, including the Moneta Volunteer Fire Department, responded immediately, she said.
Deputy Chief James Richards of Scruggs Volunteer Fire and Rescue said he had arrived at the scene with additional responders from his department — based about 20 minutes from the church — just past 7 p.m. All individuals had been removed from beneath the tent, and the scene outside the church looked “like controlled chaos,” Chief Richards said.
In a statement provided to The New York Times on Friday night, a spokeswoman for Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, about 25 miles from the church, said it was aware of the incident and “coordinating closely with first responders and community partners.”
Mark Walker contributed reporting.
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