Collingwood‘s Round 2 clash against Adelaide at the MCG was briefly thrown into chaos in the second quarter after a fire alarm sounded during the match.
Just 30 seconds into the second term, players from both sides were forced to gather in the middle of the ground, while fans were ushered out of the stadium after sirens began blaring throughout the venue.
Following five minutes of evacuation efforts, it was confirmed by the MCG that fans could return to their seats.
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Collingwood recovered from the brief stoppage in play to run out 15. 10. (100) to 8. 10. (58) winners, but star ruckman Brodie Grundy admitted players had been frightened by the alarm.
“It was actually pretty scary, sort of doomsday stuff, fortunately it was a false alarm,” Grundy told ABC after the game.
“We tried to focus on the task at hand. There was a few whispers that there was a fire, then it obviously came through that it was a false alarm.”
Shortly after the completion of the match, the MCC released a statement explaining what had caused the alarms to go off.
“What we know at this stage is that during the course of usual operations, a sprinkler activated in a food outlet on Level 4 of the Ponsford Stand, towards the end of the quarter time break,” an MCC statement read. “The water from the sprinkler hit an oven which was in use, creating steam.
“As part of our standard safety procedures, the operation of a sprinkler activates the Emergency Evacuation System. In usual circumstances, once an incident of this nature is investigated and found to have no risk to patrons, the alarm system is isolated by our operators and the automated evacuation procedure is suspended. The MCC will conduct a full review of the operating system, to understand why the automated evacuation of the venue was not suspended.
“The MCC sincerely apologises to members, patrons, the competing Clubs and AFL for the disruption to the match.”
The brief stoppage was the only bit of resistance the rampant Magpies faced in what was virtually a siren-to-siren win.
Collingwood faces an uphill battle to keep its unbeaten streak alive next week when it faces Geelong next week, while the 0-2 Crows will face cross-town rivals Port Adelaide.