The first acrobat released from the hospital after Sunday's Barnum & Bailey "human chandelier" stunt went horribly wrong says that she can't wait to perform the act again.
23-year old Samantha Pitard said that although her fellow acrobats are still in a Providence, Rhode Island hospital, she is anxious to get back to work.
"I'm hoping to join back up with the tour and show the world that I'm OK, and I'm hoping some of the other girls will do the same," she told the Associated Press on Tuesday.
Pitard and seven other performers were hanging by the hair from a suspended contraption, 40 feet in the air, in a stunt called the "human chandelier."
"Suspended only by a string!" the announcer exclaimed, before the women suddenly plummeted to the ground.
One performer broke her arm, back, and neck in the accident. Another broke both ankles and suffered a liver puncture from a broken rib. Other women are undergoing operations, and according to Pitard, none can walk on their own.
Pitard suffered spinal fractures and a bitten tongue, and received three stitches on her head.
The Illinois native said that injury and death are occupational hazards.
"Every single one of us in the troupe, every single circus performer, knows that they are risking their lives every time they go out there to perform or practice," she said in an interview.
"We hope it doesn't happen, but we know that we are taking that risk, and we love it enough to take that risk every day to make people happy."
A broken carabiner was discovered after the accident, and investigators are examining what caused the metal clip to break.
Providence Fire Department representative Paul Doughty said that the carabiner should have been able to hold at least 10,000 pounds, and that the women and metal apparatus weighed 1,500 pounds.
