A fight at the downtown Dallas convention center where the National Cheerleaders Association All-Star Championship is being held this weekend caused loud noises that led to panic and injuries today, officials said.
The Dallas Police Department responded to an “incident” at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center around 1 p.m. local time and determined no shooting had occurred. Police said two people had gotten into a fight, which caused multiple poles to fall, creating loud noises in the building.
The loud noises led to “panic,” the police department said, prompting people in attendance to “rush outside in a stampede.”
Police evacuated the building as a precaution, the department said, and shut down the cheer event for the day.
It will resume tomorrow, said a spokesperson for Varsity Brands, of which the NCA is a part.
Ten people were taken to hospitals with injuries ranging from bumps and bruises to fractured extremities, Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesperson Jason Evans said. The injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
The NCA All-Star Championship is expected to bring more than 58,000 people to the area through the weekend, more than 30,000 of them cheerleaders from 43 states and nine countries, according to the cheerleading organization.