this is one of the saddest things i have read in a while. just such a fluke situation, unbelievable. makes you really think about things and how precious life is.
i can't believe we can see a video of a kid watching his dad fall to his death in a very typical, day-to-day situation. That's insane. And so sad
So sad. So many accidents happen because people get excited and lose awareness of their surrounding. I got stitches from playing Wii for the same reason... it happens. I am devastated for the child. That's a terrible memory to carry with you for the rest of your life.
anyone know what happens in the human body to turn a bad fall into cardiac arrest? i would have expected him to die from injuries to the head and maybe brain swelling. i guess any traumatic injury like that can just trigger cardiac arrest regardless?
I found this: Non–cardiac SCDs is unrelated to heart problems in 35% of cases. The most common non–cardiac causes: trauma, non-trauma related bleeding (such as gastrointestinal bleeding, aortic rupture, and intracranial hemorrhage), overdose, drowning and pulmonary embolism.[16] and then this: Intracranial bleeding occurs when a blood vessel within the skull is ruptured or leaks. It can result from physical trauma (as occurs in head injury) or nontraumatic causes (as occurs in hemorrhagic stroke) such as a ruptured aneurysm. Anticoagulant therapy, as well as disorders with blood clotting can heighten the risk that an intracranial hemorrhage will occur.[1] I believe that is the answer in this case...intracranial hemorrhaging/bleeding caused sudden cardiac death (SCD) or cardiac arrest.
First of all I want to say I disagree with people saying it is in any way the fans fault. The stadium was poorly designed, as evidenced by multiple falls. To suggest he "deserved it" for reaching out in front of the other guy with a glove is downright ludicrous. Hamilton was probably trying to throw the ball to the guys kid. I have caught a foul ball and can tell you, in the last couple seconds that little white sphere is approaching you, everything else around you disappears. Another thing, check out 1:01 of the video in post #3. If he would have let go of the ball as he was falling, he could have gotten a grip on the top of the outfield fence, at least enough to right himself. Some extremely sad stuff.
Your brainstem control most of your bodily functions. During a severe case of trauma, or brain swelling, theoretically, if your brain steam stops sending impulses, your heart stops beating. That would explain why he was able to talk shortly after the fall, and slowly slipped into unconsciousness. I've seen this happen first hand.
Just a terrible story. My thoughts definitely are out to his family. That poor child had to watch this happen to his daddy. Josh Hamilton is reportedly crushed. I was in DFW this morning, driving back to Austin, and they were saying they hadn't decided if he was going to play tonight. I wouldn't blame him if he didn't. Nolan was clearly affected in the press conference last night.
I don't recall anyone saying he deserved it but he left his feet to lean over a railing that separated him from a twenty foot fall and all that was left for him to balance with was his body on the railing...which he lost that balance fight with. It was totally his fault...even if he was the best intentioned father in the world to get his son a ball. The sad part is his son needed him to keep his feet planted and remain his living, loving Dad. In my opinion, a reasonable person would not have done what he did to catch a ball given the height he was at. But, he was obviously amped about getting that ball. Yes, they can change the league requirements for outfield railing height to four or five feet...and someone will still likely find a way to fall because they severely want to catch that little white ball instead of buying one at the stand or fan shop. I'm not opposed to additional safety features installed, though. If you have to make fans clip on to the railing like a mountain climber to protect them from themselves, then go for it. Since most people are of the opinion that these were just fluke accidents by fans in the heat of the moment (even Nolan Ryan still thinks nothing should be done and it was an accident), then I don't think anything will be done about the railing height.
Very sad story. I feel bad for all involved I heard for the all star home run derby they will have a gold ball with some actual gold in it. Hope they re-think that idea. Was a bad idea even before this
Apparently the widow asked Nolan if he could get the video taken down from the MLB site. She's trying to protect her very distraught child. I suggest that we do the same here. I guess it's up to the poster or the mods to take it off.
Nolan Ryan has actually stated no such thing. In interviews he has given since, his response has been that "We'll do whatever we have to do to make this stadium as safe as we possibly can for our fans" and that safety is the club's "No. 1 concern" and that his staff is continuing to review Thursday's tragedy and how it can be prevented in the future. I agree that the tragedy stemmed from a "fluke accident" caused by "heat of the moment" type of reactions and its precisely because of this, that improvements should be made to prevent such tragic results from such a minute and simple error and reaction. The height of the railings are in code, but barely rises to the upper thighs of many individuals, extending the height of the railings by a foot and maybe even adding nettings to the gap, seem like a simple and effective improvement.
Just saw the video. If I'm going to criticize the stadium construction, I'm not harping on the rail, I blame the fact that there's a gap between the wall and the bleachers. Why the heck would you design it that way? Why have a perfectly person sized gap there that leads straight to concrete? Build something to cover the gap. If he fell onto the field, he'd likely be alive right now. Most other stadiums have no low(ish) barriers that lead straight to falls onto concrete like that. Either the barrier is higher, or the fall isn't as steep, or the fall is onto grass/people/chairs/something not as deadly as concrete.
In context, I was referring to rail heights specifically and he said this: "We feel like what we have is adequate," Ryan said after Morris fell. "We feel like this was strictly an accident. The ballpark, when it was built, was built above specs as far as what is accepted, so we feel good about it." It was in reference to the first incident, however, which I didn't catch when I read it. He was fine with the rail height after the first incident. There are other safety steps that can be taken besides raising the rail. Whether Nolan changed his mind about the rail heights after this latest incident...I don't think he said so dunno? I would guess they don't install a higher rail as an option...but time will tell.
Incidently the gap between the wall and the stands serves a tunnel/walkway to the bullpen and use to be covered by a deck, which led to fans climbing onto it to retrieve foul balls. Yeah, I somehow misread your statement as in regards to the stadium as a whole and not just the railings. Its still uncertain what improvements or fixes the Rangers will install after further review, but I hope they do raise the rail height, as the last two incidents has involved fans tipping over rails. Strangely both incidents invloved firefighters, but what made this one so much more tragic and sad for me (asides from the victim dieing) was the fact his six year old son was there to witness it all happened, alone, helpless and surrounded by strangers.
The gap between the field and bleachers always confused me. Reminds me of the fan who fell from the the stands at the Astrodome ~1996.
