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Tim Nelson
St. Paul, Minn.

Circus Juventas fined for not getting bleachers inspected

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The city of St. Paul will fine a circus school for not getting proper permits after a set of bleachers collapsed this week.

More than 400 people were on the bleachers when they collapsed at the end of a Circus Juventas performance Sunday night. Seven people were taken to the hospital with injuries.

Bob Kessler, director of St. Paul's department of safety and inspections, says Circus Juventas didn't get permits or inspections when it regularly put up and took down its temporary seating. Kessler says circus officials apparently had concerns of their own about the risers.

"They actually admitted that from time to time that they had made repairs, or tried to strengthen it or make it more sturdy, you know, and that gives us reason for pause, because that's the kind of thing that you should be doing under permit, have an inspector there, and make sure that what you're doing is structurally sound," he said.

The city will fine the school about $500. Kessler says city officials are working with the circus school to meet city standards in the future.