The inquest into the death of drum technician Scott Johnson concludes with the handing down of 28 recommendations to improve safety which includes a licensing scheme for staging companies.
- Apr 12, 2019
AceShowbiz - The father of a crew member killed after the stage collapsed at a Radiohead concert in Canada has welcomed the findings of an inquest into his death.
Drum technician Scott Johnson died in 2012 hours before the band were due to take to the stage at Toronto's Downsview Park when the stage roofing buckled and caved in.
Promoters and the firm providing the stage controversially avoided charges over the accident due to legal technicalities, a decision that angered the band, but an inquest into Scott's death closed on Wednesday, April 10 with jurors handing down 28 recommendations to improve safety.
— Radiohead (@radiohead) April 11, 2019
Welcoming the jury's verdict, the percussion tech's father Ken told Canada's Chronicle Journal newspaper that it had brought him "closure."
"For us, we sort of accept that life is different and we expect that emotional rollercoaster, we don't see a way out for that," he said. "I think it just brings some closure, at least. There's hardly a month gone by in the last seven years where I'm not involved in some dialogue about Scott and what's happened, so I quite look forward to perhaps not having that dialogue."
The recommendations agreed by the jury included a licensing scheme for staging companies operating in Canada, improvements in training for staff constructing temporary structures, and the establishment of a working group, that will include Ken and experts, to advise on changes to working practices in the live entertainment industry.
Radiohead's drummer Phil Selway, who was close to Scott, gave evidence during the inquest, saying that his death had caused the band "immeasurable pain and grief" and made them feel "vulnerable" when performing live.
The "Paranoid Android" rockers were due to perform to a sell-out crowd when the metal scaffold roofing collapsed, killing Scott and injuring three.
They only returned to the city to perform in 2018, when they held a minute's silence for Scott and frontman Thom Yorke spoke of his anger at the failure to prosecute anyone over the death.
