Fan suffers life-threatening injuries in fall from upper-level stands at PPG Paints Arena

A man suffered life-threatening injuries after falling from the upper level of PPG Paints Arena during the Pittsburgh Penguins game Monday, police said.

The man, who wasn’t identified, fell about 7:15 p.m., moments after Anthony Mantha scored the Penguins’ second goal during the first period.

TribLive night news editor Dave Williams and High School Sports Network producer Jess Levo, who were both at the game as fans, witnessed the fall.

Prayers for the young man who fell tonight. Happened right in front of me. I’m not going to say anymore about it. Just please pray for him.

— Jess Levo (@JessLevo) October 27, 2025

“He was just lying there unconscious,” Levo said. “Everyone was just stunned and in shock.”

She ran behind the loge section yelled that someone had fallen from the the upper level.

When she got back to the suite, she could see people trying to help the man and saw he was bleeding.

“I decided not to look anymore and just prayed for the young man,” Levo said.

People including police and medical professionals responded quickly, Williams said.

During the fall, the man struck a person who was in the suite level below before continuing to fall to the lower bowl of the arena, police said.

The person who was struck was evaluated by paramedics and declined further treatment, police said.

They said they were investigating the circumstances that led to the fall.

“Our concerns remain with the individual and his family at this time,” said Penguins spokesman Evan Schall.

Play wasn’t halted, and few in the arena appeared to see it happen.

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby registered the 1,700th point of his career during the game, but what happened in the stands put that moment into perspective, he said.

“(It) doesn’t feel right to be talking about points when we hear something like that,” Crosby said. “So obviously our thoughts and prayers are with that person and their family and hopefully that they’re OK. … It feels kind of weird talking about hockey when something like that happens and you find that out.”

This marks the second serious fan fall at a Pittsburgh sports event this year. It’s also the third fall that happened at a Pittsburgh sports venue this year.

On April 30, Kavan Markwood fell from the Clemente Wall in right field at PNC Park during a Pirates game.

Markwood, 20, who recovered from the fall, was charged with underage drinking, then invited back to the stadium to throw out the first pitch of a game.

On Saturday, a man working on the main scoreboard at Acrisure Stadium fell about 50 feet onto a catwalk, police said.

Related:

• 'Broken everything': Kavan Markwood hasn't watched his fall from Clemente Wall during Pirates game
• 'A blessing to be back here': Kavan Markwood throws out 1st pitch
• Man who fell at PNC Park charged with prowling at ex's house