Rowdy Eagles fans celebrating their team’s blowout victory—and impending Super Bowl appearance—ground downtown Philadelphia to a halt Sunday night as thousands took to the streets.
Despite city officials blocking off nearly one square mile around City Hall and greasing its poles in the hope to deter fans, videos across social media showed them stopping traffic, climbing traffic lights and generally causing havoc in the wake of their team’s 31-7 win over San Francisco.
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw had already pleaded with residents: “remember—climbing greased poles isn't a Reality TV Show challenge!” But it was of no use.
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In one particularly troubling incident, fans outside Philadelphia’s City Hall even rode on the tailgate of an ambulance as it attempted to transport an unconscious person through the crowd and to the hospital.
In another dangerous situation, more than a dozen Eagles fans fell through the roof of a bus stop they had climbed just moments before, though it remains unclear if any of them sustained injuries as a result of their fall.
“Guess they didn’t grease the poles good enough,” The Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Stephanie Far said she overheard at the scene.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney urged fans to celebrate “joyously, safely, and respectfully” after the Eagles victory and provided this statement:
“Congratulations to Jeff Lurie, Howie Roseman, Nick Sirianni, and all the coaches, players and staff of this year’s NFC Champions – our Philadelphia Eagles! This has been an energizing season from the start, and we are excited that the Eagles are going to fly all the way to the Super Bowl. As a lifelong Philadelphian and the Mayor of this great city I am thrilled to see fans of all ages and from every neighborhood celebrating side by side, full of pride and excitement. This is a wonderful night and I ask Philadelphians to celebrate joyously, safely, and respectfully.
“And remember: It’s a Philly thing.”
Police and cleaning crews were able to clear the crowd from the area surrounding Broad Street just before 10 p.m., with photos posted by local reporters showing barren streets strewn with beer cans and other detritus.
It’s not the city’s first taste of sports-related chaos, either—widespread reports of rioting and looting, as well as dozens of reports of property damage, followed the Eagle’s Super Bowl victory back in February 2018.
Fans flipped cars on several streets, set furniture on fire, tore down traffic lights, broke windows and scaled the gates of City Hall, according to the Washington Post.
The team is set to take on the winner of Sunday night’s matchup between the Bengals and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl on Feb. 12.
