SERVICE MEMBER HITS TURF DURING ALAMODOME RAPPEL

A US service member fell onto the Alamodome turf during a rappelling display before the UTSA-Navy game, according to accounts of the pregame ceremony. The display formed part of UTSA’s annual Salute to Armed Forces and Veterans game. Four personnel from Detachment 2 of the 6th Combat Training Squadron were due to descend from the rafters and present the colours before the coin toss. One of them lost control during the descent and struck the field. Medical personnel attended to him before he went to hospital.

Descriptions of the fall differ: one places the service member halfway down the rope when he accelerated, while another describes a 150ft plunge from the roof. Tanner Phifer shared footage and images on X and said the service member lay motionless after the fall. Phifer said he was taken to hospital as a “Priority One” patient, a designation indicating a need for immediate medical attention. UTSA staff formed a semicircle around him while medical personnel provided care for about 10 minutes. Staff then placed him on a stretcher and took him through the Alamodome tunnel.

The emergency delayed kickoff by about 10 minutes, after which UTSA and Navy took the field. The San Antonio Fire Department reportedly transported the service member to hospital. His identity and condition had not been disclosed. UTSA 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.”