Shaky Stairs In Rio

The structure, built atop scaffolding, wobbled under the weight of fans who attended the June 15 game between Argentina and Bosnia, according to video shot by a Brazilian photographer.

The video shows the staircase of wooden steps sway as people climbed it, grabbing handrails to support themselves as they headed via their only exit to a concrete ramp leading to a subway station.

Fans of various nationalities said they were scared it might come crashing down.

“When people walk on it the wood moves, so with thousands of people walking up there, there could be an accident,” said Jorge Martinez, a Mexican systems engineer who used the stairs to leave the game. The state government issued a statement saying the staircase was inspected following complaints, reinforced and then re-inspected again to ensure fan safety.

Three days later, nearly 100 rampaging Chilean fans broke through a security checkpoint at the stadium, rushing through a media room and breaking down walls as they tried to force their way into the sold-out Spain vs. Chile match.

The supporters surged through the center underneath the stands, shoving their way past journalists and TV crews toward a corridor they thought would lead to the grandstands.

To get to the corridor, they broke down a temporary wall then rushed back down the corridor in the other direction, smashing other parts of the same wall. Security was reportedly slow to react, eventually containing the fans in a section of the corridor around 15 minutes after they first forced their way in.

The Rio de Janeiro state security secretariat, which oversees security forces, said in a statement that 85 fans were detained.