Five injured in State Fair stagecoach crash

Erika Burghardt, the reigning Indiana State Fair queen and an IU junior, was one of five people hurt Sunday afternoon during a stagecoach accident at the State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, according to an Indiana State Fair press release.

The stagecoach was entertaining the crowd before the eight-horse hitch competition in the Pepsi Coliseum when it overturned during a figure-eight maneuver. The release stated that all five passengers, including Burghardt, were transported to IU Health Methodist Hospital with minor injuries and were later released.

Sgt. Richard Myers, Indiana State Police public information officer for Indianapolis District 52, said Burghardt was released Sunday night and returned to the fairgrounds Monday to fulfill her duties as queen. According to her Miss Indiana State Fair biography, Burghardt is studying psychology and studio art at IU. She is also a member of Alpha Phi sorority.

Myers said Burghardt was riding atop the stagecoach with driver Todd Shockey of Charlotte, Iowa. Myers also said the four passengers inside the coach were judges or participants with the event and identified them as Melanie Grant, Austin, Minn.; Rodney Kohler, Freemont, Ohio; Gary Nebergall, Arthur, Ill.; and Barbara Watson, Montpelier, Ohio.

Shockey was examined at the scene of the accident but suffered no injuries.
“The driver was spoken to after the crash, and there was no inclination that it had anything to do with him,” Myers said.

The reason for the overturn is unknown, but officials said the driver has 20 years of stagecoach driving experience. Myers said the stagecoach, tack and horses were all inspected after the accident, but no mechanical issues or defects were found.

The crowd at the hitch competition was asked to leave after the accident and return at 6:30 p.m. for the start of the event.

The incident occurred a day before the one-year anniversary of the fatal stage collapse during the 2011 Indiana State Fair. Media Relations Director Andy Klotz said the response team was on the scene within seconds and the EMS arrived within minutes.

“The response was immediate and very effective,” he said. “We executed the plan that was in place, and it went very well.”

­— Katie Mettler