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Man Falls To Death At Baseball Game Reaching For Ball
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 8, 2011
Modified Jul 8, 2011
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 8, 2011
Modified Jul 8, 2011
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For the second time this season, a baseball fan has fallen to his death at a stadium in the middle of a game. During the second inning of last night's game between the Rangers and the Oakland A's at Rangers Ballpark in Texas, 39-year-old Shannon Stone, a firefighter, tumbled over a left field railing while reaching for a ball and fell twenty feet onto concrete. The ball had been tossed into the stands by All-Star outfielder Josh Hamilton, and Stone's young son was seated next to him when his father fell.
"I tried to grab him, but I couldn't," fan Ronnie Hargis tells ESPN. "I tried to slow him down a little bit. He went straight down." Witnesses say paramedics quickly took Stone out on a stretcher, and he was conscious. Athletics reliever Brad Ziegler, who was reportedly in tears when speaking to reporters, told ESPN, "They had him on a stretcher. He said, 'Please check on my son. My son was up there by himself.' The people who carried him out reassured him. 'Sir, we'll get your son, we'll make sure he's OK.' He had his arms swinging. He talked and was conscious. We assumed he was OK. But when you find out he's not, it's just tough."
Local fire officials tell ABC Stone "went into full arrest" while being transported by ambulance and was pronounced dead at a Fort Worth hospital. Here's video of the tragic incident:
Former president George W. Bush, who used to be general manager of the Rangers, was at the game and reportedly knew of the incident. (The game continued without interruption, with the Rangers winning 6-0.) Last year another firefighter fell 30 feet from the second deck of seats at Rangers Ballpark while reaching for a foul ball—and survived despite a fractured skull. Last night Rangers' president Nolan Ryan refused to discuss any safety changes that would be made at the stadium, saying, "Tonight, we're not prepared to speak about anything further than the accident and the tragedy. That's where I'm going to leave it."
In May, a 27-year-old man died after he tried to slide down a staircase railing during the seventh inning of a Colorado Rockies game; he reportedly lost his balance and fell 20 feet to his death. The incidents are sobering reminders of why stadium owners print liability disclaimers on the backs of tickets—whether it's falling or getting fallen upon or beat up or vomited on, you've got to be careful in the stands.
Tagged
baseball
fatality stadium
rangers
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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