Authorities have identified a 25-year-old Houston man who fell to his death while horsing around on an escalator at Reliant Stadium while attending the Texans preseason finale Thursday.
The man allegedly was trying to slide down the outside of the handrail on the escalator at the Coca-Cola Gate near the northeast side of the stadium at about 8:10 p.m. when he fell three stories, landing on the pavement. He was identified as Jonathan Kelly by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.
Houston police could not confirm the man was horse-playing before he fell.
Kelly was attending the game with some friends, said a coworker who was not at the event and asked that his name not be published.
The coworker said Kelly had worked for about three months as a plant operator at a private water and wastewater utility company.
Reliant Park issued a statement confirming an escalator accident involving a fan. The victim was taken to a hospital.
The man was on the escalator on a northeast side of the stadium descending from level five to level three when he fell about 60 feet, Mark Miller, General Manager SMG Reliant Park, said during news conference Friday morning.
Miller said he didn't have details about what the man was doing before he fell because the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Miller said staff is posted on each landing at escalators and signs on the equipment encourage safety.
The stadium staff will review safety procedures and the escalators will be inspected to make sure they are working properly and are safe, Miller said. He said the northeast escalators will be shut down while they are inspected. They won't be operating during a high school football game scheduled for Friday night, he added.
Miller expressed sympathy for the man and his family.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this moment," he said.
Jamey Rootes, president of the Houston Texans, echoed Miller's sympathy for the family.
The organization, he said, expresses "our deep sadness at this tragic accident."
Houston Fire Department officials said the man was taken by a private ambulance to the hospital.
Houston police said that according to initial information they received, the victim died at the hospital.
Kelly's death comes just more than a year after 39-year-old Shannon Stone fell to his death during a Texas Rangers baseball game in Arlington in July 2011. Stone had grabbed a baseball tossed by an outfielder toward the stands and toppled over the railing, falling about 20 feet to concrete below.
Anna-Megan Raley and Carol Christian contributed to this report.
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