Football games are pretty exciting stuff. You can expect at least one or two surprising things a game, on average. But one thing you certainly don't expect is an aerial attack!
But that's what a college football game was marred by yesterday, April 18. As reported by Dexerto, Virginia Tech's spring intra-team scrimmage was just minutes from kicking off at 3:00 pm local time. And then, a parachutist swooped down... and got himself into quite the unfortunate predicament.
The unnamed man was thrown by 15-mile-per-hour winds straight into Lane Stadium. He ended up getting stuck—right up on the Jumbotron. The parachutist was flying with the American flag alongside him and ended up getting tangled up with it. Pretty scary stuff, right? I bet I wouldn't have been as calm as he was.
And immediately, there were efforts to rescue the poor guy. Due to the sheer height he was stuck dangling at, they had to use a crane to get the parachutist down from there. The Virginia Tech fire department was responsible for helping him.
Officials had to leave the field while the rescue was performed. This led to a delay in the start of the game.
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Virginia Tech Released a Statement About the Parachutist
But, after all that kerfuffle, the parachutist ended up being okay. Virginia Tech, who call their teams the "Hokies," released a statement about the situation on social media.
"We are grateful to report that the skydiver was safely secured and is currently stable. Our primary focus remains on their well-being," the statement began. "We extend our sincere appreciation to the first responders, event staff, and medical personnel for their swift, coordinated, and professional response," it finished.
However, whilst the parachutist may be "stable", he might not have come out of the situation unharmed. One patron of the Hokies reported seeing the parachutist exit with "his arm in a sling" in a post on social media.
In the end, the game ended up having to start over an hour later than it started. If nothing else, we're just glad the parachutist is okay!
