(File Photo of Police Siren Lights)
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A fan at Monday night’s game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and St. Louis Blues was taken to a hospital after falling from the upper concourse at PPG Paints Arena.
The incident happened early in the first period after Anthony Mantha’s goal gave the Penguins a 2-0 lead.
Emergency personnel treated the fan, a man who was not identified, before taking him to Mercy Hospital, located a few blocks from the arena.
Play was not halted at any time while the man was being treated. Pittsburgh police told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the man was in critical condition.
“Our concerns remain with the individual and his family at this time,” the Penguins said in a statement.
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who became the ninth player in NHL history to score 1,700 points, said the team found out about the fall after the game.
“It doesn’t feel right to be talking about points when you hear something like that,” Crosby said. “Obviously, our thoughts and prayers are with that person and their family and hopefully they’re OK.”
Penguins coach Dan Muse echoed Crosby’s sentiments.
“We all come here for a sport and a game and when you hear something like that, it kind of puts everything else aside,” Muse said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family.”
The fall was the third such incident at a Pittsburgh sporting event this year.
In May, Kavan Markwood fell over the railing atop the 21-foot-high Clemente Wall and onto the field at PNC Park late in a game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs. Markwood spent several days in the hospital but did make a recovery. An acquaintance of Markwood was later charged with providing alcohol to Markwood, who was 20 at the time of the incident.
On Saturday night, a worker at Acrisure Stadium, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, suffered injuries to his legs when he fell approximately 50 feet while doing work near the stadium’s scoreboard.
