A military service member has died after he fell hard as he rappelled from the ceiling to midfield before a University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) college football game where the military was honoured.
Nellis Air Force Base Public Affairs said the service member assigned to the 6th Combat Training Squadron, Detachment 2, was taken Saturday to a local hospital, where he later died.
An investigation was underway into what led up to the incident at UTSA’s annual Salute to Armed Forces and Veterans game against Navy.
Several videos of the fall posted on social media showed the man, in combat fatigues, quickly descending to the ground feet first.
The fall occurred with fans in the stands and a band assembled nearby on the field. He was treated on the field for several minutes and taken away on a gurney.
In a statement after the game, UTSA offered counseling service contacts for students and said: “We are deeply saddened by the incident that occurred at the start of tonight’s game. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the soldier who was affected, his family and his military colleagues.”
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The man, whose identity was not immediately released, was one of four military service members who were scheduled to participate in the pre-game rappelling demonstration.
According to an Air Force website, the service members who were participating in the rappelling demonstration were part of a team of specialists who embed with Army and Marine units and help to direct air and artillery strikes from forward ground locations.
Part of their training includes learning to rapidly drop by rope, sometimes from helicopters that are 100 feet (about 30m) or more above the ground.
The game at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, which UTSA won 38-34, was delayed for about 10 minutes.
After the game, UTSA Coach Jeff Traylor told reporters that the accident was “heartbreaking” and “tragic”.
He said the team could see the effect that it had on the crowd of over 23,000 people as soon as players arrived on the field for the game, although Traylor had only been told there had been an “incident” that would delay the start of the game by about 10 minutes.
“You could tell the energy was just gone,” he said.
“It just really puts things in perspective. It really does.”