Toddler dies after falling 50 feet from Staples Center luxury suite after LA Lakers game

[marmar]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A toddler has died after falling 50 feet from a luxury suite at the Los Angeles Lakers game against the Golden State Warriors in the Staples Center arena.

Police Sgt. Frank Alvelais says early Monday that the boy, believed to be 2 or 3 years old, was taken to Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, where he died. The boy's name hasn't been released.

The boy fell from the third level top tier of the luxury suites several minutes after the Lakers beat the Warriors 117-89 on Sunday night. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-us-lakers-boy-falls,0,3271571.story

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. That poor little baby! His poor family!

:cry:

[Odin2005]

2. OMG!

:cry:

[redirish28]

3. I feel so bad for that family. My wife can't understand why the boxes

didn't have glass. maybe that will be something stadiums will consider now.

[KharmaTrain]

4. They Do...

They're opened or closed at the request of the box holder/owner. This is a terrible accident and I'll be curious to learn more...if there were at least some type of safety bars to prevent something like this.

[redirish28]

5. I'll let my wife know. Thank you. It is a terrible accident. I honestly do feel

sorry for the family as my wife does. It just happened that was the first question out of her mouth. Where was the glass?

[RamboLiberal]

6. To me this looks barrier were not designed high enough

Probably children were not kept in mind when designing these boxes. I'm not rich enough to be in a luxury box but I've often thought it would be easy to take a fall from many of the stadiums/arenas. It's tough to design a barrier high enough to prevent a fall yet allow good sight lines.

And I've also seen some parents who are somewhat oblivious to where/what their kids are climbing on or around.

Good visual of the fact the barriers here were 18 inches according to this.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/11/parents-were-taken-photos-moments-before-boy-fell-from-lakers-luxury-box.html


A security guard, top, looks down from where a young boy fell to where a second security guard stands following the Los Angeles Lakers' NBA basketball game against the Golden State Warriors at Staples Center, Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010, in Los Angeles. ((AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill))

[KharmaTrain]

8. That Picture Says It All...

These places aren't "kid friendly"...an adult playground. For business I've been in several of these type of suites and except for some key moments of the game, the adults are oblivious to much except the networking and the food. It's a tragedy all around.

[gratuitous]

10. I worked a case many years ago

A 16-month-old kid fell out of a second story window on a college campus. The windows were floor-to-ceiling with a guard rail a couple of feet off the ground. For most college-age students, ample security to block a fall. Not so much for a 16-month-old visiting Dad, who was taking a summer course to keep up his teacher certification. There are now better barriers. I suspect Staples Center will learn a similarly expensive lesson, and if the boy was the offspring of wealthy or even well-to-do parents, the loss of projected lifetime income will be rather substantial, even by Hollywood standards.

[budkin]

7. Holy shit that is fucking horrible...

[Fumesucker]

9. My sympathies to the family...

But I have to wonder whether alcohol was being consumed during the game by those responsible for the child's safety, it's a common activity at such events.

[EFerrari]

11. Every toddler's parents' nightmare.

Horrible.

[BlueIris]

12. Awful. nt