NHL Pittsburgh Penguins' PPG Paints Arena

By Jillian Pikora From Daily Voice

A fan remains hospitalized in critical condition after falling roughly 35 feet from the upper concourse at PPG Paints Arena during Monday night’s Pittsburgh Penguins game, officials confirmed on Thursday, Oct. 31.

The Penguins and Oak View Group, which manages the arena, said in a joint statement that “the patron was not using the designated staircase at the time of the incident” and that “the safety barrier remained intact.”

Witnesses told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette the man fell backward from the lip of the upper bowl into a pane of glass that cracked and gave way, sending him into the suite level and striking another spectator before tumbling onto a walkway below. The second person declined medical treatment, police said.

Emergency personnel treated the man inside the arena before transporting him to Mercy Hospital, located just blocks away. His identity has not been released, but officials described his injuries as “life-threatening.”

The fall occurred early in the first period—just after forward Anthony Mantha’s goal gave the Penguins a 2-0 lead over the St. Louis Blues. Play was not halted during the response.

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who reached his 1,700th career point that night, told the press that the team only learned of the fall after the game.

“It doesn’t feel right to be talking about points when you hear something like that,” Crosby said. “Obviously, our thoughts and prayers are with that person and their family, and hopefully they’re okay.”

Head coach Dan Muse echoed those sentiments, adding, “We all come here for a sport and a game, and when you hear something like that, it kind of puts everything else aside.”

This marks the third serious fall at a Pittsburgh sporting venue in less than six months. In May, a 20-year-old fan fell over the 21-foot-high Clemente Wall at PNC Park during a Pirates game and was hospitalized for days. Last weekend, a worker at Acrisure Stadium was injured after falling about 50 feet near the scoreboard.

The Penguins said their “collective thoughts remain with the victim and his family at this difficult time.”