Camp Randall Stadium - "The Camp Randall Crush"

"The Camp Randall Crush"

On October 30, 1993, the Wisconsin Badgers football team defeated the Michigan Wolverines, 13–10, for the first time since 1981. As the final gun sounded, students began to charge the field to celebrate, but were blocked by the guardrails surrounding the field. The crowd in the back, not aware of what was going on at the front, continued to move forward, now aided by gravity. Those in front were crushed against the rails and then trampled as the throng spilled onto the field. Seventy-three students were injured, six of them critically, though none were killed. Several Badgers football players assisted with removing the injured from the tangle, some of them were even medical students and administered CPR to many victims who were not breathing. Per Mar Security (stadium security) and the University of Wisconsin were later found liable for this situation.

As a result, design changes were made in the stadium which increased the size and strength of the fences, along with better training of stadium personnel to handle a field rush. A field rush on October 16, 2010, after a defeat of #1 Ohio State proved the measures taken after 1993 worked, and only one minor injury took place as UW and Madison Police instead assisted students onto the field in a safe manner and opened up gates onto the field.