More details are available this morning on the death that occurred at the Ballpark at Arlington last night. The man’s name was Shannon Stone. He was a 39-year-old firefighter from Brownwood, Texas and, sadly, as preliminary reports noted, he was at the game with his young son, who watched the accident happen.
According to this Associated Press report, Stone was conscious after his fall, but went into cardiac arrest soon afterward and was pronounced dead within the hour.
After the game, Nolan Ryan gave a statement:
As we figured last night, Ryan said that Josh Hamilton was “very distraught,” as is the rest of the team and the Oakland A’s as well.
Last year another fan fell at a Rangers game, suffering serious though non-fatal injuries. During the stadium’s first game in 1994, another fan fell, also suffering serious injuries. It’s premature for anyone to talk about whether there are any fundamental issues with that ballpark or if these accidents were merely coincidental, and Ryan wouldn’t discuss that last night. It’s certainly the case, however, that such accidents aren’t confined to Arlington. In May a fan fell to his death at Coors Field while attempting to slide down a stairway railing. Each year, it seems, there are one or two deaths at ballparks due to falls.
But after the shock wears off, such an analysis is in order. And, as always, fans should remember that ballparks are just like anyplace else: accidents can happen and one needs to be careful.