Local

The Tabernacle closed for inspection

ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News has learned Saturday night's concert at the Tabernacle has been canceled as structural engineers inspect the 100-year-old music venue after the floor buckled during a concert Friday night.

Channel 2’s Steve Gehlbach talked to a member of the management company for the Tabernacle and he said the Corey Smith concert scheduled for 8 p.m. has been canceled.

The historic downtown Atlanta venue is temporarily shut down after customers said the floor caved in Friday just before 10:30 p.m.  An Atlanta fire marshal evacuated the Tabernacle on Luckie Street. The band Panic!  At the Disco was about two songs in when the floor broke.  A photo tweeted from the Twitter handle @GAFollowers showed a large crowd outside the Tabernacle shortly after the show was evacuated.

A fan at Friday’s concert provided YouTube video that shows the moments before the floor gave way.

John Anderson was in the front row.

“The crowd was so pressed together. Everybody had to jump up and down. I was jumping up and down as well. You couldn't do anything else. The whole crowd was moving together," Anderson said.

http://twitter.com/coreysmithmusic/status/432215577419976704

That’s when the floor in front of the stage cracked and he snapped a photo of management stopping the show.

"When everyone started to move out and cleared the front part down there, you could see the big crack down on the floor," said Allie Carson, who was in the balcony.

But fans said the staff and band did a great job getting everyone out safely. The fans left out on the street were told to hold on to their tickets.

The band Panic!  At the Disco plans to come back this summer.

Gehlbach is following up a statement expected from the general manager.

A statement on the Tabernacle's Facebook page said, "The Tabernacle is a historical 100-year-old building. We will be meeting with a structural engineer ASAP to make sure the building is safe for another 100 years."

Channel 2's Steve Gehlbach will have a live report on this developing story on Channel 2 Action News at 6.