The accident, which happened shortly before 1pm, resulted in two deaths and caused injuries to one other individual. Construction of the venue, which will be able to accommodate more than 65,000 visitors and will feature 20,000 temporary seats, was scheduled for completion in January.
The stadium was selected by Fifa to host the opening match of Brazil 2014.
Steve Smith, managing director of agency Ear to the Ground, which earlier this year opened an office in Brazil, told Event the country’s vast amount of experience in hosting major events would help it to bounce back from yesterday’s incident.
"[The accident] definitely intensifies the international spotlight on the industry," he said. "However, it’s a nation with live events at the heart of its culture. From carnivals to festival Rock in Rio, Brazil is no stranger to hosting mass participation events. This is a mature sector with a vast amount of experience."
Smith said most countries have questions raised about their ability to handle a major sporting event as deadlines approach. "From Delhi to Athens, Cape Town to Sochi, everyone starts panicking about deadlines, budgets and crime. I was in Brazil when the London Olympic security underestimates hit and it made front page news that London was falling apart – it didn’t.
"Brazil is being hit by some hefty challenges as it’s not handling them well. However, for all its problems, it’s an amazing country that loves football and loves to party. The World Cup will be one hell of a party, possibly the best ever. It just might be a rocky road to get there."
Odebrecht Infraestrutura, the Brazilian construction company building the stadium, published a statement stating the crane lifting the last module of the stadium’s metallic roofing structure toppled, which led the module to fall onto a circulation area of the east building and partially damage the LED façade.
The company added the stadium structure was not compromised and this was the 38th time this procedure had been carried out on the site.
The statement continued: "A module the same size had been installed just over a week ago in the stadium’s south sector. Teams from the fire department are currently on the location. At this moment, all efforts are being concentrated on offering complete assistance to the families of the victims."
Fifa and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) said: "We know the safety of all workers has always been paramount for all the construction companies contracted to build the 12 Fifa World Cup stadiums.
"The Department of Labour and the local authorities will fully investigate the reasons behind such a tragic accident. Please understand that we are in no position to comment further at this stage, as we are awaiting further details from the authorities."
Ricardo Trade, executive director of the LOC for the World Cup, added: "It’s impossible to make any forecasts at this moment. What we know is what the images are showing, that part of the structure fell down. At the same time, we can’t think that if [construction] is delayed by three months, the stadium will end up out of the World Cup."
Officials have raised concern over venues in Manaus and Cuiabá being ready by December, Fifa’s end-of-year deadline for the construction of World Cup 2014 venues.
Earlier this month owing to the recent riots.
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