
Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones performs at a
concert as part of their 'A Bigger Bang' world tour in Sydney, Australia,
Tuesday April 11, 2006. Richards, 62, has suffered a mild concussion while
vacationing in Fiji and was flown to hospital in New Zealand as a precaution, a
spokeswoman for the band said in a brief statement Saturday, April 29, 2006.
Media reports in Australian and New Zealand said Richards hurt his head when he
fell out of a palm tree at an exclusive Fiji resort. (AP Photo/Paul Miller,
File)
SYDNEY, Australia - Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards was hospitalized
for a mild concussion he suffered while vacationing in Fiji, reportedly after
falling out of a palm tree.
Richards, 62, was injured earlier this week and flown to a
New Zealand hospital for treatment, band spokeswoman Fran Curtis said in a
statement Saturday.
"Following treatment locally and as a precautionary measure, he flew to a
hospital accompanied by his wife, Patti, for observation," Curtis said.
The statement did not elaborate on Richards' condition or explain how he was
injured.
But media reports in Australia and New Zealand said Richards hurt his head
after falling out of a palm tree at an exclusive Fiji resort and remained
hospitalized in Auckland.
A newspaper report Sunday said Richards was flown to Auckland's Ascot
Hospital on Thursday after the accident. Hospital duty manager Steve Kirby would
not comment on whether Richards was a patient there, citing the hospital's
privacy policy.
The Fijilive.com news Web site reported that the accident was believed to
have happened at Fiji's exclusive Wakaya Club resort.
Resort employee Salesi Finau told The Associated Press that Richards and his
wife recently stayed at the resort for about a week but would not say when they
left or comment on reports of Richards' accident.
The Rolling Stones played a concert in Wellington on April 18 as part of
their "A Bigger Bang" world tour.
According to the band's Web site, the Stones' next scheduled concert is at
the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, followed by 34 more dates across
Europe.