Tropicana Field shredded by Hurricane Milton is the latest sports venue damaged by weather
Roof panels on home of the Tampa Bay Rays were torn to shreds Hurricane Miltonwith debris scattered across the field and seating areas after the deadly storm hit Florida.
Team officials said only a handful of essential personnel were at Tropicana Field, located in St. Petersburg, when the storm hit. Aerial video and footage showed the roof of the domed building completely torn to shreds, leaving a clear line of sight to the stadium.
No injuries were reported from the arena.
It is the latest sports venue to be severely damaged by the weather. Here are a few more:
Heavy snow tore a hole in the roof of the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis on December 12, 2010.
At least three large panels collapsed, prompting officials to postpone the Vikings’ home game scheduled for the next day against the New York Giants. The game was moved to Monday and was played in Detroit.
The roof was replaced, but the stadium was demolished four years later.
The Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility collapsed during a storm on May 2, 2009, injuring about a dozen players and coaches. Special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis and 33-year-old scouting assistant Rich Behm suffered the most serious injuries. DeCamillis required surgery to stabilize a broken vertebra in his neck, and Behm was left permanently paralyzed from the waist down after his spine was severed.
A severe storm tore a hole in the roof of the Georgia Dome during the Southeastern Conference Tournament on March 14, 2008. It delayed Mississippi State’s win over Alabama by more than an hour and postponed a game between Georgia and Kentucky.
While Mississippi State led with 2:11 left in overtime, a loud boom was heard in the dome. The beams near the dome’s roof began to sway and a gaping section was torn open, spilling debris including nuts and bolts.
Players and coaches from the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide were sent to the locker room along with the coaches’ wives and children, and stadium officials began evacuating fans from the upper reaches of the stadium.
SEC officials eventually moved other tournament games to Georgia Tech’s Alexander Memorial Coliseum.
When Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans on August 25, 2005, the Superdome was used as a shelter for approximately 30,000 people. A few hours after the ordeal, parts of the roof began to peel off due to heavy winds. Daylight could be seen from the dome as the rain poured in.
Within two days, the Superdome had no air conditioning and temperatures reached the 90s. Significant flooding from broken levees caused the Superdome to slowly begin to fill with water, although it was limited to the field level. The Superdome eventually had to be evacuated, with a mass move to the Astrodome in Houston.
The Saints had to play their entire regular season on the road, splitting games between their temporary headquarters at the Alamodome in San Antonio and LSU’s Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. They even played their first home game at Giants Stadium in New Jersey.
It cost about $185 million to repair the Superdome, which reopened in 2006 for the Saints’ first home game.
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