Exclusive: Aerial Performer Sam Panda Breaks Silence on her near Fatal Bali Accident

American aerial artist Sam Panda made headlines last month when she fell October 26th, performing at Finn’s Beach Club Canggu in Bali, breaking her neck as she hit the rough hard concrete stage head first in front of a live audience. The South Carolina native was an employee of the popular hotspot when the rig she was on malfunctioned. Panda dropped about 13 feet according to experts who say this could have been prevented if proper safety precautions were taken.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

Panda, who was forced to leave Bali via medevac in order to receive proper care, is speaking out for the first time about what happened. In an email interview from Taiwan, where Panda had two surgeries and is currently undergoing physical therapy, she gives a very detailed account of the situation and alleges the club threatened her and refused to pay for lifesaving treatments.

As a result, she had to start a Go Fund Me page, which you can still contribute to.

I reached out to Finn’s for a comment and did not get a response.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

The Voluntourist: Give us an update on your condition. How many surgeries have you had and will you make a full recovery?

Sam Panda: I technically had two procedures done. One is called traction, where they screw a metal half halo into your skull (yes, you heard that right). They drill into your head while you’re conscious and screw your head down and then pull the metal halo back and tie it to a bar behind you. This keeps your head completely stable and you can only look straight up. I spent a lot of time examining one single tile on the ceiling for 36 hours (it was the worst 36 hours of my life I literally cried the entire time). Traction is a pre-surgical procedure that keeps you from moving but aligns your vertebrae and your spine so that when they cut you open everything is already where it needs to be and there is no guessing. Before the surgery, the hospital in Taipei realized that the MRI and X-ray scans from Bali were done on really outdated equipment, so they had to do their own. They saw that the damage was much, much worse than the doctors in Bali thought, so they had to do a replacement surgery instead of a reconstruction. My C5 and both the disc above and below it were too damaged to be saved, so they had to be replaced with titanium and whatever artificial spinal discs are made out of. These parts were all ordered from Germany, because hospitals in Asia don’t make these parts, and they wanted to use the best equipment in the world. So what they did was completely remove a significant part of my C spine and replace it with titanium. They also had to surgically repair my fascia surrounding my spine, and once all of that was done it released the pressure on my spinal cord. This was incredibly important because I was very, very close to paralysis. But removing the broken bones and soft tissue significantly cut down on healing time because there was no longer anything left to heal. I have to go through a lot of rehab to regain my balance and get used to using my limbs after having such massive damage done to my spinal cord, but everything is healing really well. I will be able to make a full recovery in a few months if I work hard and keep myself motivated. I should not need any other surgeries because they were able to do such an amazing job with the one they did. And because they didn’t try to bother saving anything there is very little risk of it being damaged again, because the bones are gone.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

The Voluntourist: What has Finn’s paid for in terms of your medical expenses?

Sam Panda: Finns paid for my stay at the hospital in Bali, but they refused to pay for the treatment that would save my life and my ability to walk. The doctor in Bali told me that he had only performed “less than 10 but more than 5” spinal surgeries in his entire career, and I videotaped him saying all of this as well as what his plan for surgery was. When talking to my surgical team in Taipei, they agreed that this doctor was not experienced enough to perform the procedure I needed and I would have ended up paralyzed at best and dead at worst. When I explained this to Finns, they told me that going to Taiwan for the surgery was my choice (even though it was a necessity if I wanted to survive), and they refused to pay for my medevac or anything in Taiwan. They actually did not even stay in contact with me after I left Bali. I never received any messages from them asking if I was doing ok or if the surgery was successful. Absolutely nothing. They cut me off completely and it was completely heartbreaking. They did everything they could to save themselves money and to sweep me under the rug, They have also blackmailed me through email refusing to pay my salary for October until I publicly write on social media how amazing they were. I refuse to do this because they left me to die in a hospital that was incapable of treating my injuries and have treated me like I mean nothing to them ever since the accident.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

The Voluntourist: Did you have a contract with them, were you a full-time employee, what were your benefits like, did you have medical insurance of your own?

Sam Panda: I did have a contract with them, and I was a full-time employee. I performed aerial shows, contortion shows and fire shows up to four times a day. I was given a work permit to work legally in Indonesia and was told several times that I was under their insurance. I asked them time and time again (which I have on record) whether or not I should purchase my own personal insurance, and was consistently told that it wasn’t necessary. I have been working as a performer for a very long time, so I am well aware of what a venue should have in terms of insurance for their performers. A reputable venue should always be prepared for the worst, especially when they have acrobats performing up to eight meters in the air (which is what I was doing). I had no reason not to trust my company, and when they told me I didn’t need personal insurance I believed them.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

The Voluntourist: What was Finn’s reaction to the accident and do they acknowledge it was faulty equipment that made you fall?

Sam Panda: I have never heard Finns say directly that they were at fault or that the equipment broke. They have released statements that are very vague. Something along the lines that they have been in contact with me and they only care about my well-being, which to me is absolute garbage. They haven’t been in contact in any way, they haven’t fully taken responsibility for the accident. This is one of the things that makes me so very angry because it is so incredibly obvious that the equipment was faulty and can be seen in the video. Their reaction has gotten worse and worse towards me the longer that I’ve been hurt. They would bring in big men to my hospital room to bully me while I was still in Bali, and it got so bad that I had to tell the hospital to refuse all visitors unless they called my room and I gave them permission to send people up. They basically wanted me to tell the world how amazing they were and how great of a company they were and seemed to care nothing about me in general. The most important thing to the management and owners of Finns is their reputation and not my safety or care. To clarify though, the workers and staff who are not in any management positions in any way are (and were) absolutely lovely and would come to visit me in the hospital and bring gifts and comforting words. Unfortunately, though, I was told that the owner of Finns told their employees that they were no longer allowed to talk to me. I still have a lot of friends there who gave me this information.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

The Voluntourist: What was the atmosphere like working at Finn’s? We’re employees happy? Did you see any unethical business practices?

Sam Panda: I really enjoyed working at Finns. I got a lot of positive feedback from the managers and they seemed to really enjoy the performances I put on. I worked very hard for them to create the entertainment they needed, and they seemed to be very pleased with me. I never noticed anything unethical, but I was mostly focused on my own department.

The Voluntourist: How surprised are you by Finn’s response to the situation?

Sam Panda: Not only am I surprised, but I am devastated. I thought I was part of a family working there, and when they turned on me to protect themselves, I was completely crushed. Everything that happened was clearly their fault. They were the ones who put the wrong winch for our aerial shows. They were the ones who told me that I had to do the show. They were the ones who never bothered to check that everything was working properly, and then they tried to bury all of it. I was shocked. Heartbroken. Devastated. And when I found out that Tony Smith (the owner) had such a crazy criminal background and had kidnapped someone in the past, I was legitimately fearful for my life. It felt like they would do anything they could to protect their company name, and I was afraid they were trying to kill me in the hospital. One morning I was given too much fentanyl and overdosed, and fortunately in my panic called a bunch of people to get someone there to help me. By the time my husband showed up I was unconscious. Once we felt the shift in Finns attitude towards this, we knew that we had to leave Bali and that it was a matter of life and death. That is when we started the Go Fund Me because we had no way to get out without it.

Sam Panda Credit: Creg Ferguson

The Voluntourist: Will you ever perform again and are you nervous to get back on stage?

Sam Panda: I will absolutely perform again. I’ve already started my rehab which includes split training. I will not let bullies like the owners of Finns take away my livelihood or my passion. I will not allow them to scare me away from being an acrobat and a performer. It is who I am, and it’s a huge way that I define myself. As soon as I am healed, I will be back in the air.

Sam Panda Source: Facebook

The Voluntourist: What advice would you give to fellow Americans working abroad and to other aerial performers?

Sam Panda: I would definitely recommend that any performer abroad (American or not) asks repeatedly about their insurance and what their employer would do in the case of an accident. Everyone has the “it will never happen to me” mentality, but I had to learn the hard way that it can. I would also recommend that even if your company insures you, take an extra $80 a month and buy your own insurance as a backup. Nothing is as embarrassing as having to ask the world to help save your life. It’s a horrible experience, and I am so lucky to have people who care, but I feel so sad that I had to ask in the first place. Also, all aerial performers know to check their equipment, but there are some things that we cannot check. In my case, the equipment that broke was 8 meters up in the air and needs to be checked by a professional every day. Even though my club told me it was checked and ready to go, it clearly wasn’t. I would recommend being present during all equipment tests.

The Voluntourist: Did you sense there was an issue with the rigging? Did you have any warning before you fell that the equipment was about to malfunction?

Sam Panda: I had no idea that the rigging was going to fail, and I think that saved my life. I was doing a very small hoop drop, and that is exactly when the rig broke, so I was already falling. By the time I realized I was falling for too long, I hit the ground. But because I wasn’t expecting to crash, I was relaxed and ready to catch myself for my drop. I think if I had known the rig was going to malfunction like that, I would have tensed up and probably have been in the wrong position to fall just out of fear. Knowing how to drop and not knowing that the rigging was faulty saved me from instantly dying in front of an audience.

The Voluntourist: What would you like to say to those who have supported you?

Sam Panda: To everyone who supported me, even in the smallest ways with prayers or love or visits or donations, I just want to say thank you. Without you, I would not have the emotional strength to pull myself up and fight to survive. Without those of you who donated money, I would not have been able to have the surgery in Taiwan that saved my life. People from around the world really rallied together to help support me, and I’ve never felt so much love. I want to give a special shout out to the circus community around the world, because even if we don’t know each other personally we all look out for each other, and they really pulled through to help me. I wish I could go to all of their shows and studios and give them big hugs and love and give back as much as they have given to me. I am so blown away by how much people care. It’s incredibly emotional for me to realize that the world is full of good people with good, loving hearts.

Sam Panda Credit: Creg Ferguson

The Voluntourist: What’s your course of action against Finn’s and what are you hoping they’ll do for you?

Sam Panda: I am going to start to lawyer up at this point. Finns has made the mistake of threatening me in person, through emails and text messages, They have denied me proper medical care. They knowingly used unsafe equipment to save themselves a few dollars, and learning the history of the owner, I don’t think they deserve to go unpunished. I have heard horror story after horror story, and if nothing else happens but awareness that this company is run by people who care about nothing but themselves and their paychecks, then that is good enough for me. I don’t know I expect the outcome to be, but I truly believe that the world deserves to hear this story, and anyone who spends their money there deserves to know that it is lining the pockets of cruel and selfish people. I feel lucky to have been able to get through this and I will survive and recover, but other accidents could happen (even to guests at the venue), and they deserve to know that the owners will do nothing to help them. This is a company that will abandon people to save their reputation, and I want that to be known more than anything. I’ve never felt so brokenhearted and sad in my life as I have because of how they treated me, and if that is the outcome of the lawsuit, then that will be satisfying to me.