Alexisonfire The Real CanadianDeal

Now that's Olympic style Sacrifice.


St. Catharines rocker leaps to aid of fan
Posted By MONIQUE BEECH, QMI AGENCY


St. Catharines-born musician Dallas Green was jamming hard on his guitar, entertaining the fans gathered for Alexisonfire's Olympic concert.

Moments later, the rocker leapt offstage to help a distressed teenage female fan who was injured when a barricade came crashing down during the free event Tuesday night in downtown Vancouver.


It all happened within about 20 seconds of the five-member St. Catharines-based band's first song of the night at David Lam Park -- part of the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad.

The crammed crowd of about 7,600 took out the temporary barrier, injuring 19 people as it collapsed. Nine were taken to hospital to be treated for mostly minor injuries.

It wasn't until a security guard came onstage that Green, 29, who plays the heavy rock gigs without his glasses, realized something had gone wrong.

The singer/guitarist looked down to see several people toppled on the ground. Green called out to the crowd before leaping from the stage to check on injured fans.

That's when Green spotted a shaken girl, who looked about 16 or 17 years old, who had badly injured her feet.

The tattooed rocker picked her up in his arms and carried her to a medical tent.

"It's just the kind of person I was raised to be, you know?" Green said in a phone interview from Vancouver Wednesday.

"You see someone that's in trouble, you go and help them. It was such a moment of chaos that I thought maybe if I go and help them and sit beside this girl, maybe it will help her calm down."

Meanwhile back onstage, bandmates George Pettit, Wade MacNeil, Chris Steele and Jordan Hastings tried to keep fans aware of the situation, and asked them to back up and clear the venue.

City of Vancouver officials, who organized the event, praised the band for acting quickly and keeping the crowd calm.

Barricades have collapsed before at the band's concerts and other hyper fans have been injured thrashing to the group's hardcore rock music, but never on this scale, said Green, adding the safety of the crowd always comes first.

"We've been touring for eight, almost nine years now, and played thousands and thousands of concerts, and this is the first time we've ever had something like this happen."

Green said he and his band-mates, who also visited fans in the medical tent, are relieved no one was seriously injured.

Still, Green said having to cancel the show only a few minutes in was disappointing.

"Not only was it a chance for us to be part of a monumental occasion, this being the first Olympics on home soil where Canadians have won a gold, and the chance to do really well, it was our chance to be part of Canadian history. Now, we're sort of part of Canadian history in a bad way."

Green, who also fronts the band City and Colour, said Alexisonfire hopes to return to Vancouver for a makeup concert in the future.




ONTARIO! Ours to Recover