A Port Angeles man with Sequim connections continues to recuperate in Wenatchee following an attack at a concert in the Gorge Amphitheater on July 21.

Joe Allen, Jr., 46, a certified nursing assistant at Sequim Health & Rehabilitation, was one of two men hit by rocks at a Phish concert in Quincy.

Samir Poles, 38, of Colorado, was also injured by thrown rocks.

Allen remains in Wenatchee Valley Hospital as of Aug. 6 in satisfactory condition after law enforcement said he was struck from behind. Local authorities said Poles was released from medical care.

On a gofundme page created by Allen’s friend Raymond Ahrendt of Grand Rapids, Mich., it says Allen has swelling in the brain, nine staples in the back of his head and a fractured skull. The page indicates Allen is unable to walk on his own.

Kyle Foreman, Grant County Sheriff’s Office spokesman, said Allen and Poles — whose identities were disclosed via social media — were separated by several hundred feet during the concert when they were attacked, and they don’t know each other.

Authorities said they don’t know if the rock that hit Allen in the back of the head was thrown or was wielded by an assailant who was standing behind him.

“We haven’t received word that anyone saw the attack,” Foreman said.

“We located people who were nearby who heard a commotion and saw the victims were injured but could not provide details on suspects, and no one stepped forward.”

Foreman said people at the concert speculated to police that the men were attacked by neo-Nazis, however, he said there was no evidence to back the assertion.

One person who was camping in the area who had a Swastika tattoo on his shoulder could not be connected to the assault, Foreman said.

“No bias gestures and no bias speech was heard during either one of the assaults,” Foreman said.

“That someone tried to cut off one of (the victim’s) dreadlocks, that’s not a complaint from either of the victims.”

Foreman said they continue to investigate.

“Our minds are open,” he said. “There’s no solid connections to any motive. Unfortunately, neither of the victims can describe their assailants and no witnesses saw it happen because most of their attention was on the band stage,” Foreman said.

Detectives continue to ask witnesses or anyone with knowledge about the attacks to contact the Grant County Sheriff’s Office at 509-762-1160, or crimetips@grantcountywa.gov.

Support

Family and friends have created online financial campaigns for both men with Allen receiving support from nearly 1,000 people on gofundme.

“As you can imagine all of this adds up and anything we can do as a community to help Joe would be greatly appreciated,” Ahrendt wrote.

Read more and/or support Allen at gofundme.com/fundraiser-for-joe-allen-jr.

Ahrendt seeks $50,000 to help Allen with medical expenses and has reached $29,435 so far.

One of Poles’ campaigns for $16,000 was already met, and the second one for $30,000 is at $23,323 at gofundme.com/sos-support-our-samir.

Allen, a father and long-time CNA, has worked at Sequim Health & Rehabilitation about a year, said Paige Bendixen, director of nursing at the facility.

“He’s an excellent worker and much loved by residents and staff,” she said.

“People who didn’t know what happened to him did their own digging and one of our residents even tracked him down and spoke to him over the phone,” Bendixen said.

Allen’s coworkers continue to support him, too.

“The facility has really gotten together,” Bendixen said.

“When employees have a tough time, people donate time off and for Joe he won’t have any of that time come out of his pocket. That’s showing how beloved he is here.”

How long Allen will be in the hospital is undetermined, friends say.

Paul Gottlieb of the Peninsula Daily News contributed to this report.

Reach Matthew Nash at mnash@sequimgazette.com.