Former Football Player Who Fell from 21-Foot Wall at Pirates Game Is 'Awake' but ‘Has a Long Road Ahead’

Family and friends of a fan who fell 21 feet onto the warning track during the Pittsburgh Pirates game last week are calling his recovery “nothing short of miraculous.”

Kavan Markwood, 20, was in critical condition after he went over the railing during the seventh inning of the Pirates-Chicago Cubs game at PNC Field on Wednesday, April 30.

“We are so relieved and grateful to share some encouraging news about Kavan,” GoFundMe organizer Jennifer Phillips, who is the mother of Markwood’s girlfriend Alonna, shared on Saturday, May 3.

She continued, “As of this morning, Kavan is awake, alert, and able to speak. After everything he’s been through since the accident on Wednesday night, this progress feels nothing short of miraculous.”

After Markwood fell, first responders rushed to treat him, as players looked on and knelt in the outfield. The man was eventually stretchered off the field and transported to a local hospital in critical condition, Pittsburgh police said at the time. 

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At the time of the incident, Markwood was celebrating Andrew McCutchen’s double, which drove in multiple Pirates’ runs, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

Markwood, a former Division II football player, was attending the game with his girlfriend Alonna and another friend, according to CBS News. 

The incident shook players, coaches and fans in attendance at the game. 

“We are all deeply saddened and truly heartbroken after the terrible accident that occurred [Wednesday] night,” Pirates chairman Bob Nutting said in a statement. “It was one of the most difficult moments many of us have ever experienced. We are devastated.”

In the GoFundMe, which has nearly reached its goal of $45,000, Phillips shared her thanks for the “prayers, support and generosity" regarding Markwood.

“He still has a long road ahead of him, but today brought a moment of hope that we’ve all been holding onto,” she wrote on Saturday.