CHGO reporters, podcasters among those injured in American Family Field escalator accident

EDIT: This originally incorrectly stated that Greg Braggs Jr. said he broke his femur. That has been corrected.

Following Saturday’s game between the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers at Milwaukee’s American Family Field, an escalator accident left several people, including reporters and podcasters for CHGO Sports, injured.

Greg Braggs Jr., a CHGO Sports producer and CHGO Bears podcaster, shared on X that someone broke a femur. He also detailed what happened.

“The entire escalator shook and everyone got scared, and then seconds later, the whole thing gave way and just turned into a roller coaster off the tracks,” Braggs explained. “Piling people on top of each other as it charged us all to the bottom. Some elderly people were injured very badly and trampled over. An older lady was right in front of me, so I tried to hold her up as we hit the bottom, and we both got completely taken out by the people behind us. A couple of people went right through my knee.”

Nicholas Moreano, a Bears beat reporter for CHGO, posted a picture of himself icing an injured knee. In another post, he said, “Greg and I may be on IR for a bit.”

Braggs also explained what he saw was the source of the problem, there was nobody to keep the escalator from crowding.

“The reason this happened was because there was no one working there that monitors the escalator and only allowing a proper amount of people on it at one time. Waaaaaay too much weight. It just gave way. It’s not a mall escalator that is one floor. It’s longer and steeper than that. Honestly, the stadium has to be held accountable for not holding a limit to the amount people on the escalator at one time. They are lucky no one died.”

The Brewers also issued a statement, acknowledging what happened and thanking the on-site medical people for their swift action.”

“After the conclusion of today’s game, an escalator at American Family Field moving fans from the terrace to the loge level malfunctioned, resulting in an increased downward speed. Eleven people were treated at the ballpark and six others transported to area hospitals with non-life threatening injuries. Our onsite physician and EMS were on the scene immediately, and we are appreciative of their quick response.”

Luke Stuckmeyer, a longtime sports anchor in Chicago, exited the escalator just before the accident. He described how scary it was but also detailed that it could have been a lot worse.

“I was on that escalator when it first jolted forward at the Cubs game and got off right before it gave way,” Stuckmeyer said. “I’ll just say a lot more people could have gone to the hospital and it was a scary, bloody scene. The word triage was used. It looks harmless here.”

[Photo Credit: CHGO Cubs on X]