THE BALLOON MAN

Circus trapeze artist performing in Salinas falls from aerial act

May. 1, 2011

Written byGriselda D. Ramirez gramirez@thecalifornian

A circus trapeze artist is reported in stable condition after falling several feet from his aerial act during a performance this afternoon at Northridge Mall in Salinas.

One circus official said the male acrobat was speaking to paramedics on the scene and was conscious, telling them where he may be injured.

The man was later flown to a San Jose hospital, a circus official said.

The two-person aerial act, named “The Flying Trapeze,” was the final performance of the 1:30 p.m. show, according to Josie Loyal, a former circus performer and member of the Carson and Barnes Circus.

According to the circus office manager Kristin Parra, the act was near its ending, the acrobat had performed two flips and was about to catch the second person in the act but a faulty grip of the hand caused him to lose his grip and fall.

The acrobat clipped the edge of the safety net and fell to the pavement below, Parra said.

One report said a circus employee on crowd control may have partially broken the actobat’s fall.

The circus is set up in the back parking lot behind JC Penney and adjacent to the Century theaters on the west side of the mall.

Salinas police and firefighters responded to the emergency call at about 3:30 p.m. and were investigating the cause of the fall.

Loyal said the 4 p.m. show would be performed using a stand-in acrobat.

“The show must go on; it’s a tradition,” she said. Even the injured acrobat would want that to happen, she said.