An Eagles fan who climbed and then fell from a light pole in Philadelphia after the team’s NFC Championship game win died on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old, identified as Temple University student Tyler Sabapathy, suffered brain trauma after a fall on 15th and Market streets on Sunday night and was then placed on life support before dying at Jefferson Hospital, ABC 6 in Philly reported Tuesday.
fans celebrated their NFC Championship win on Jan. 26, 2025. Instagram / @itsmedreko
In a statement from Temple President John Fry and Vice President for Student Affairs Jodi Bailey, the school mourned his loss.
“It is with deep sadness that we write to share news of the death of first-year student Tyler Sabapathy,” the statement read. “Over the weekend, Tyler sustained critical injuries and ultimately pᴀssed away this afternoon.
“The loss of a promising 18-year-old man like Tyler is both tragic and traumatic. There are no words that can make sense of it, and the entire Temple community mourns his pᴀssing. Our hearts go out to Tyler’s family, friends, classmates and all who knew and loved him.”
Sabapathy, a native of Toronto, Canada, was a member of the school’s gymnastics team and was majoring in exercise and sport science.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker warned fans before the celebrations not to climb poles or shoot guns in the streets.
“You don’t want to be in a celebratory moment, you know, have a tragedy occur,” Parker said. “Please don’t climb the poles.”
Multiple people, including Sabapathy, climbed poles in the city. ABC 6 also reported at least two people were sH๏τ during the celebrations in the streets.
One fan also fired gunsH๏τs into the air at Cottman and Frankford Avenues.
Nick Alessandro of Blackwood, N.J., told CBS News this week he saw the fall that led to the Temple undergraduate’s death.
“He was trying to take down the Eagles flag from the pole, and I guess he lost his balance and then fell,” Alessandro said. “And then everyone swarmed toward him, but other people went away. It was a mess.”
Temple encouraged students affected by the loss to seek counseling through the university.
“He no doubt had a bright future ahead of him, and it is so tragic that we will not be able to see how he would have made his mark on the world,” Temple added in the statement.
