Mets fan dies after falling over railing at Shea

[OnBaseMachine]

Yikes. Didn't a fan fall from the stands down to below the outfield fence in Riverfront Stadium a few years before it was torn down?

Mets fan dies after falling over railing at Shea

Associated Press

Updated: April 16, 2008, 7:12 AM ET

NEW YORK -- A man attending a New York Mets game with his family lost his balance on an escalator and fell two stories to his death, police said.

Antonio Nararainsami, 36, and several relatives, including his two young daughters, were leaving the stadium at the end of Tuesday night's game against the Washington Nationals when he fell in a section below the left field stands and landed on a concrete floor. Nararainsami, a Guyanese native who lived in Brooklyn, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead half an hour later.

Kevin Prashad, a cousin who attended the game, said Nararainsami was walking down the escalator, which wasn't moving, and was holding the hand rail when he "lost his footing."

The Mets said in a statement that they had been "advised of a tragic accident that resulted in the death of a fan." They said team officials and police were investigating.

"Our deepest and heartfelt condolences go out to the fan's family," the team's statement said.

The death of Nararainsami, who was wearing a Mets cap when he fell, appeared to be an accident, and no charges had been filed, police said.

Nararainsami installed heating and air conditioning systems for a living, loved sports and was the captain of a local cricket club, his relatives said. His wife, pregnant with their third child, had stayed home while he attended the game.

Nararainsami's death wasn't the first at Shea. In 1985, a 21-year-old Yonkers man fell 100 feet from an escalator and was killed.

This is the Mets' last season at Shea Stadium. A new stadium, Citi Field, is scheduled to open next year.

Tuesday's game, which the Mets won 6-0, had celebrated Jackie Robinson Day, the 61st anniversary of when the Brooklyn Dodgers legend broke major league baseball's color barrier.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3349003

[AtomicDumpling]

I was at a Reds game at Cinergy and saw a man dive over the railing in the outfield to catch a homerun ball. I mean he dove waaay over the railing. He fell to the ground and broke some bones. He caught the ball though.

Another time at a Bengals game a guy was yelling at the players as they walked off the field into the tunnel after a win. He leaned too far over the railing and fell about 30-40 feet. I think they played the Redskins that day and won when the Redskins bounced a would-be winning field goal off the uprights.

[VR]

Candlestick Park had a few of these massive escalators....I always wondered how more people didn't fall off...especially the toasted ones.

[macro]

Here's one of the guys who fell at Riverfront. I think there was another, though...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpocGQxXRyg

[Caseyfan21]

I was at a Reds game at Cinergy and saw a man dive over the railing in the outfield to catch a homerun ball. I mean he dove waaay over the railing. He fell to the ground and broke some bones. He caught the ball though.

I think I was at that Reds game too. I gotta say, if all you do is break some bones AND catch the ball it might be worth it.

That's so sad about the fan from Shea though. It's always a fear of mine in large crowds like after a game that someone could accidentally be shoved over. Of course I am a little scared of heights so that probably factors in.

I think I read a statistic somewhere that 50% of falls from 3 stories result in death. That's pretty scary if you think about it because 3 stories isn't that high.

[OnBaseMachine]

I think I was at that Reds game too. I gotta say, if all you do is break some bones AND catch the ball it might be worth it.

That's so sad about the fan from Shea though. It's always a fear of mine in large crowds like after a game that someone could accidentally be shoved over. Of course I am a little scared of heights so that probably factors in.

I think I read a statistic somewhere that 50% of falls from 3 stories result in death. That's pretty scary if you think about it because 3 stories isn't that high.

I remember reading a while back where a window washer in New York City fell something like 47 stories and somehow survived it. That is amazing. I think someone posted the story on the non-baseball forum. Here's a link to that story:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/12/nyregion/12fall.html

[TeamBoone]

This is a tragic story, but I guess I'm dense. How do you fall "off" an escalator? I can see falling down an escalator, but not off one.

[OnBaseMachine]

Report: Mets fan believed perched on railing before fatal fall

ESPN.com news services

Updated: April 17, 2008, 10:06 AM ET

The New York Mets fan who plunged to his death at Shea Stadium on Monday may have been perched on the handrail of the escalator from which he fell, the New York Daily News reported, citing police sources.

Investigators believe Antonio Nararainsami lost his balance while sitting on the escalator railing on the mezzanine level after Tuesday night's game and fell four stories, the newspaper reported. It was earlier reported that he fell about two stories.

"Several witnesses said they saw him start to play on the escalator before he fell," a police source said, according to the report. "It's an unfortunate accident."

Nararainsami, who attended the game with his two daughters, ages 9 and 14, and other family members, is also survived by his wife Ambeeka, who is pregnant with the couple's child. She said she could not believe her husband would have done something so reckless in front of his children, according to the report.

"It's a shock to me [and] my family," she said, according to the Daily News. "We were looking forward to our third child, which is a boy.

"It's very hard. He's a great father. ... He had so much to look forward to."

Officials said Nararainsami and his daughters were leaving the game when he proceeded onto the escalators, which were not moving at the time of the accident. The escalators are usually turned off after the seventh inning to encourage fans to use walkways instead, but they remain accessible, officials said, according to the report.

Nararainsami, a Brooklyn resident and immigrant from Guyana, was just in front of his daughter Emily, 14, when he fell off the side and landed on another escalator below, according to the report. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead half an hour later.

The Mets held a moment of silence for Nararainsami before their game against the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night.

"Our deepest and heartfelt condolences go out to the fan's family," the Mets said in a prepared statement.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3351037

[OnBaseMachine]

Police: Fan may have been sliding down handrail before fatal fall

ESPN.com news services

ATLANTA -- A 25-year-old man died from injuries sustained after falling about 150 feet down a stairwell at Turner Field during Wednesday night's game between the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets.

The senior investigator with the Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office, Mark Guilbeau, said Thursday that the man who fell was Justin Hayes of Cumming, Ga.

Guilbeau said an autopsy will be done to determine the cause of death.

Atlanta Police Department spokesman Ronald Campbell said Hayes was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital with serious head injuries. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Hayes was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Braves spokesman Brad Hainje said Hayes apparently fell from the club level to the landing on the stairwell on the field level during the eighth inning.

Campbell said Hayes may have been sliding down the handrails when he fell and that alcohol may have been involved.

Police are still investigating the incident.

The Braves, in a statement released Thursday morning, said: "The Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Police Department are investigating the tragic accident that resulted in the death of a 25-year old male fan at last night's game. Our sincerest and heartfelt condolences go out to his family."

Earlier this season, a fan at Shea Stadium in New York was killed when he plunged four stories from an escalator during a game. According to media reports, witnesses said the man was perched on the escalator handrail when he lost his balance and fell.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3407384

[Johnny Footstool]

Guilbeau said an autopsy will be done to determine the cause of death.

Cancer? Hypothermia? Spider bite?

[PuffyPig]

Cancer? Hypothermia? Spider bite?

Perhaps he died from the trauma of the fall?

Just guessing here.

[Chip R]

Perhaps he died from the trauma of the fall?

Just guessing here.

Yeah, I don't think we're going to need Quincy to tell us how this poor schmo died.

[Hap]

Another time at a Bengals game a guy was yelling at the players as they walked off the field into the tunnel after a win. He leaned too far over the railing and fell about 30-40 feet. I think they played the Redskins that day and won when the Redskins bounced a would-be winning field goal off the uprights.

That was Game 16 of the 1988 season. Had Lohmiller made that field goal, the Bengals would not have had home field advantage in the playoffs.

[smith288]

Cancer? Hypothermia? Spider bite?

Probably complications from pneumonia