An acrobat was seriously injured Tuesday night after dropping about five metres during a show in a park in Saint-Leonard.
Paramedics took 41-year-old Matias Plaul to the hospital. They said he was unconscious at the time and suffered severe head injuries.
The incident occurred around 7:15 p.m. at Parc Wilfrid-Bastien, near Lacordaire Blvd., during a performance with five acrobats from the 'Entre Nous' show as part of the Festival Montréal Complètement Cirque.
The man fell from the top of a set of poles, though it's so far unclear what caused the fall.
The stage has been inspected by the workers’ health and safety board CNESST and is up to code.
The festival confirmed the incident on their Facebook page, saying the performer was “was taken to the hospital and is in good hands,” adding, “All our thoughts are with him. We will keep you informed.”
Festival officials said Wednesday that Plaul is doing well.
"We want to reassure the public that he's ok. He's in the hospital for obervation and wants to get out," said Nadine Marchand, the director of Monttreal Completement Cirque.
Audience members say the man was tended to very quickly by both his fellow performers and first responders, who arrived within minutes. Some described it as a very scary scene, but said everyone remained calm as they were asked to leave the area.
"We heard this bang, we heard him fall and saw him fall, to the point we were saying 'is this part of the act?'" said Catherine McGregor.
Another witness believed Plaul was trying to jump from one pole to another.
The 'Entre Nous' show of the Complètement Cirque festival had three dates scheduled this week, but those performances have cancelled.
Marchand said another troop, yet to be named, will perform between Thursday and Sunday in Verdun, Plateau-Mont-Royal and Saint-Michel.
The rest of the festival continues as planned until Sunday.
This is the first serious injury at the festival in its eight years.
