TEL AVIV (CelebrityAccess) — An Israeli man was killed during the setup of the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest after he was struck by a falling lighting rig.
According to the Times of Israel, Fuldi Schwartz, 66, was unloading equipment from a truck in a parking lot adjacent to the fairgrounds where Eurovision is taking place when a wheeled lighting rig toppled over on him.
Schwartz’s family told the Times that he was left with serious head injuries, broken ribs, a punctured lung, and a spinal injury.
He was rushed to Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital for emergency brain surgery but later died.
Police and workplace safety officials have launched a formal investigation into the death.
“We are greatly saddened by the death of the driver who was injured this week while unloading a truck with technical equipment in the parking lot of the Eurovision venue in Tel Aviv. Our thoughts and condolences go to his family,” Eurovision organizers said in a statement.
“Our priority is always for the safety and security of everyone involved with the Eurovision Song Contest and, in line with protocol, we are cooperating with the authorities,” they added.
