Parachutist lands on band at Fort Riley ceremony

Members of the 1st Infantry Division Band stand at rest while medics work on a tuba player who was hit by a sky diver during ceremonies at Fort Riley, Kan., Thursday, July 17, 2008. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

FORT RILEY, Kan.—A parachutist went off course Thursday at the start of a military review and dropped feet-first into the 1st Infantry Division's band, injuring three players.

Several thousand people watched as the man under the red, white and blue parachute landed on the 30-member band, about 50 yards off target. A gasp went up from the crowd, followed by silence as at least a dozen people rushed over to help.

"I hear, 'Oh, expletive,' and immediately, I hear a crash,'" said the band's commander, Chief Warrant Officer Scott MacDonald.

The three injured band members were treated and released from Irwin Army Community Hospital. The parachutist, Scott Hallock, refused treatment at the scene.

"We know that they're going to be all right," said Gen. Charles Campbell, head of the Army's Forces Command, during opening remarks.

Two tubas were destroyed, said Mike Keating, assistant chief of the post's Fire Department. MacDonald said a trumpet was also damaged.

MacDonald said band members had been standing, waiting for the start of the ceremony and weren't looking up. He said they didn't hear anything except a brief rustling of the jumper's parachute.

He hit the back row, landing feet first, MacDonald said.

Band member Sgt. Rachel Boggs was knocked unconscious and had a fractured jaw, hospital spokeswoman Lisa Medrano said. Sgt. Andrew Spinazzolla suffered minor neck and head injuries and had a fractured ankle, Medrano said. Staff Sgt. Mark Lucero sustained what Medrano called a minor leg injury.

Two parachutists jumped from a single-engine plane at about 6,000 feet. Keating said the second jumper's parachute lines apparently became tangled, pulling him off course.

MacDonald said he wondered briefly whether he had enough members left to perform.

"We did soldier on," he said. The band played the division's and the Army's fight songs, then sounded a trumpet cavalry charge.