Smokestack catches fire at Great American Ball Park
Like every modern baseball stadium, the Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati has its own little features and a unique decor that separates it from the other 29 around MLB.
Among those features would be the riverboat stationed above the batter’s eye in straightaway center field, in addition to the smokestacks that hover over the bleachers in right center.
Those smokestacks double as the launching point for fireworks when Reds players hit home runs, and following Billy Hamilton’s home run on Friday night, one of those smokestacks actually caught fire.
Here’s a look at the scene.
The fire was blazing for a few minutes at this point, which forced fans in the area to evacuate that section. That game itself was not delayed as the smoke drifted away from the playing field.
The Cincinnati Fire Department arrived on the scene soon thereafter and were able to put the fire out completely in short order.
It wasn’t immediately clear what went wrong, although it’s easy to surmise there was some sort of malfunction with the fireworks or the smokestack itself.
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Fortunately, no injuries or smoke-related ailments have been reported. The game has been able to continue without any further issues, so the Reds obviously averted a potential disaster.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
