Several Kansas City Chiefs fans were forced to have amputations at a local hospital after the game due to severe frostbite, a hospital official revealed Thursday.
Fifteen fans were transported to the hospital by the Kansas City Missouri Fire Department after the Jan. 13 wild-card game against the Miami Dolphins. At least 10 of those were transported for cold-related concerns after temperature readings marked minus three degrees and minus 25 with windchill.
The Grossman Burn Center in Kansas City said it treated 30 patients who suffered frostbite in January, but not all of them came from the game.
“To date, 12 patients have undergone amputation surgeries, some of which attended the Chiefs game,” Christine Hamele, associate vice president of HCA Midwest Health, which operates the Grossman Burn Center, told NBC News. “Our specialized physicians and expert care team continue to treat and monitor patients’ healing to address long-term needs, and we expect more surgical procedures over the next two to four weeks as their injuries evolve.”
Hamele warned people not to draw any exact line from the game to the amputations because some of the amputations were the result of something else. It is not clear how many of the 12 patients had attended the game.
“Some patients came in post-Chief game assuming it would heal,” Hamele said. “When they arrived in the outpatient, they don’t always reference the Chiefs game. For example, one gentleman was at the Chiefs game but is also a meter reader.”
Kansas City Fire Department Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins said the 10 patients the department brought in with cold-related injuries is a relatively low number compared to how large the arena is.
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“Arrowhead Stadium holds 79,000-plus fans, and considering the temperatures that day and the windchill, 10 weather-related transports was an extremely low amount,” Hopkins said.
The game, which included an appearance from popstar Taylor Swift, was the fourth coldest on record. The “Ice Bowl” of 1967 is still the coldest game played, with the Green Bay Packers beating the Dallas Cowboys while playing in temperatures of minus 13 degrees that plummeted to minus 36 with windchill.
