( CNN ) -- Federal regulators have fined Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus $ 7,000 for an accident during a show that left nine people injured , many seriously . The so-called `` human chandelier '' stunt was performed May 4 at the Dunkin ' Donuts Center in Providence , Rhode Island . Eight performers sustained serious injuries when the apparatus holding them failed , and they plummeted more than 15 feet . A ninth employee was hurt on the ground . An investigation by the Department of Labor 's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found the accident occurred because the carabiner -- a metal ring used as a connector -- supporting the performers was improperly loaded . OSHA cited the circus for one serious safety violation with a proposed penalty of $ 7,000 , the maximum allowed by law , regulators said in a statement Tuesday . `` This catastrophic failure by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus clearly demonstrates that the circus industry needs a systematic design approach for the structures used in performances -- approaches that are developed , evaluated and inspected by professional engineers , '' said Dr. David Michaels , assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health . `` While the $ 7,000 penalty is the maximum allowable by law , we can never put a price on the impact this event had on these workers and their families , '' he said . A spokesman for the circus said the company has not yet made a decision about whether to appeal . It has 15 days to decide . `` We do not agree with the conclusion that they drew that the way the carabiner was loaded was the sole case of the accident , '' said spokesman Steve Payne . `` But we 're going to make changes out of an abundance of caution . '' The hair-hanging act is no longer in the show , and the circus does not have any plans at this point to bring such a stunt back , he said . `` The safety of our performers , our crew -- as well as our audience -- is our top priority , '' said Payne . `` No one wants an accident like this to ever happen again . ''
The accident happened May 4 in Providence , Rhode Island . A man was killed and a woman injured when their car collided with another vehicle on the New Jersey Turnpike near Exit 8 at around 7 a.m. local time ( 5 p.m. ET ) The circus says it 's making changed out of an abundance of caution .