

Amara McLaughlin, CP24.com





Two men are seriously injured after a light standard came crashing down during the Beaches Rib Fest on Friday night.

It happened around 9 p.m. in Woodbine Park when high winds, brought in by a thunderstorm, caused overhead lights to break loose, according to paramedics.

The two victims were reportedly on stage at the city's annual east-end rib festival when the weather-related incident occurred.

"It got really windy, then it started pouring and then the lights just fell down," said Megan Weir who was in the nearby beer tent.

Witnesses told CP24 at the scene that the pair may have been part of the crew cleaning up from an earlier performance on the stage at the time.

"It was crazy to see a stage fall over like that," said Chris Sullivan, who claims he watched the whole thing happen.

Both were conscious and breathing when emergency crews arrived, Toronto Police Const. Allyson Douglas-Cook told CP24.

The pair were trapped underneath the light posts and other debris, Douglas-Cook explained. Firefighters were called to pull them from the wreckage.

They were taken to a local trauma centre in non-life-threatening condition, paramedics said.

The festival, now in its ninth year, subsequently shut down for the evening due to the incident and inclement weather.

Police have notified the Ministry of Labour.