18-year-old Eagles fan dies after falling from light pole during NFC Championship celebration

The 18-year-old Eagles fan who fell from a light pole celebrating Philadelphia’s NFC Championship Game win this past Sunday has died.

Tyler Sabapathy, a Temple University student, was among the fans celebrating in the streets of Philadelphia after the team’s 55-23 victory over the Washington Commanders. Sabapathy slipped off a light pole in Center City Philadelphia, hitting his head on the concrete sidewalk. He was taken to Jefferson Hospital with a brain injury from head trauma and pronounced dead two days later.

Temple president John Fry and vice president for student affairs Jodi Bailey issued a statement on his death.

“The loss of a promising 18-year-old man like Tyler is both tragic and traumatic,” the statement read, via ESPN. “There are no words that can make sense of it, and the entire Temple community mourns his passing. Our hearts go out to Tyler’s family, friends, classmates and all who knew and loved him.”

A Toronto native, Sabapathy was an exercise and sport science major at Temple’s College of Public Health. An accomplished gymnast, Sabapathy earned more than 120 medals.

“As a member of the university’s club gymnastics team, Tyler displayed exceptional self-discipline and work ethic, spending countless hours a week training and honing his craft. He was loved by his teammates, friends and coaches here in Philadelphia,” school administrators said.

Several criminal incidents reported during Eagles’ NFC Championship Game celebration

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker warned fans not to climb light poles during celebrations.

“You don’t want to be in a celebratory moment, you know, have a tragedy occur,” Parker said. “Please don’t climb the poles.”

This was one of many incidents which occurred during the NFC Championship Game celebration. According to TMZ Sports, two men — Jose Moya and Eugene Dennis — are behind bars over allegations of assaulting police officers who were working NFC Championship Game detail, per the Philadelphia Police Department. Another man — Tramayne Davis-Blockson — was placed into custody after he allegedly stabbed someone in the leg following a verbal altercation.

At least two people were shot over the course of the celebrations. A 20-year-old man was shot and taken to a hospital in stable condition, while a 39-year-old man suffered graze wounds to his chest and stomach. Rebekah DeShields, 26, was arrested after crashing her car into a crowd of people and injuring eight. In total, four fans were arrested and 31 were issued citations for disorderly conduct or failure to disperse.