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Some Virginia Tech football fans concerned about stadium crowd

Posted at 5:56 PM, Oct 12, 2021
and last updated 2021-10-12 17:57:26-04

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Some Virginia Tech football fans and students have raised concerns about safety at football games.

Their concern is focused on overcrowding at Lane Stadium.

Some students posted on social media that they were trampled in the stampede headed towards the stands at the student section entrances, and pushed against the fences surrounding the stadium over the weekend.

One student posted a video that he said showed his girlfriend having a panic attack during the chaos. He said they were stuck in the mob and paramedics had difficulty reaching them while his girlfriend was unconscious.

"Too many people were able to get in without a ticket, and then they just didn't have enough people on crowd management," student Dalton Philips said. "It's to the point where, the crowd is bad enough, paramedics can't get through people are having panic attacks and passing out, that kind of thing can't happen."

A Virginia Tech spokesperson said a university official was monitoring fan flow and that was managed as planned.

Officials said they experienced a normal volume of medical incidents and added a crowd like this for a sold-out game was common.

Students have created an online petition for more to be done about the situation.

This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.