Bon Jovi Caught Up In School Shooting Drama....

Bon Jovi were forced to scrap rehearsals for the start of their new U.S. tour over the weekend (15-17Feb08) after a school shooting tragedy brought Dekalb, Illinois to a standstill.The rockers kicked off their latest tour in Omaha, Nebraska on Monday night (18Feb08), but had no chance to stage a full production rehearsal, due to last week's (14Feb08) Northern Illinois University controversy.The group was on its way to Dekalb, where the rehearsals were scheduled to take place, when former student Steve Kazmierczak shot and killed five people, wounded more than a dozen others and then turned the gun on himself.Upon landing in Dekalb, frontman Jon Bon Jovi was alerted to the tragedy.He tells Billboard.com, "We didn't get any further than the airport. When we landed we were just told to get back on the plane and go home."But our crew and the stage and everything was there. Once things settled down they just packed everything up and headed to Nebraska. What else can you do?"Bon Jovi admits he and his bandmates felt it only right not to make a fuss about contracted rehearsal space time at Northern Illinois University's Convocation Center - because so many local people were suffering.He adds, "It's a shocker, just devastating."

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