6 kids hurt in incident involving camel at Shrine Circus in Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH — Six kids were taken to the hospital after an incident Sunday during the Shrine Circus at PPG Paints Arena.

A spokesman for Pittsburgh Public Safety told WPXI-TV the children and one adult were on a camel when it got spooked.

Five kids were taken to Children's Hospital and one to UPMC Mercy. The most serious injury is a broken arm.

Video sent to WPXI shows something spooked the camel, causing it to buck and throw the children off.

At this point, it's unclear what caused the camel to get spooked.

The incident happened at intermission when, as part of the circus, kids can get rides on the camels and ponies.

Witnesses described the scene as frightening and chaotic.

"We just heard them screaming and I turned around and there was a camel right outside the ring, but we just took off running and jumped over and waited," said Amanda Piccioni.

Handlers and circus crew members had the animal under control in a matter of seconds.

Witnesses also commended the announcer for keeping everyone calm and remaining in control of the situation.

Cox Media Group