Man who fell from stadium has first conversations with mom

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — For the first time since falling 40 feet out of a stadium earlier this month, 22-year-old Sean Michael Powers had a conversation with his mom.

"When I asked him how he felt today I said how do you feel? He said, 'I feel like I fell off a stadium.' So he has that kind of sense of humor," said Kristen Evers.

Ten days ago, doctors feared Powers might have suffered permanent brain damage. They now say his head is OK.

And on Tuesday -- for the first time since the accident -- doctors helped Powers get out of his hospital bed. He also ate solid food.

"Sean's strength and inner strength is getting him through this, and hopefully will help in his recovery," his mother said.

Powers has a broken pelvis, a broken hip, broken arm, even a broken eye socket.

"We're looking at quite the rehab here," Evers said. "We have a long road, but we'll get him through it."

He was in town to watch the ACC Championship Game on Dec. 1. He was walking with his friends up the ramp to the upper deck seats, when he stepped onto a railing to snap a picture.

He lost his balance and fell out of the stadium. His mother said if Sean fell onto the concrete instead of the grass, he would have died.

She thinks the stadium should make small safety improvements, like a net at the bottom of the stadium.

"Just some kind of small precaution so that if someone did get stupid or have an accident and fall over the side of the rail there'd be something there to break the fall," Evers said.

Last week, stadium officials issued a statement saying there are no changes planned for the stadium.

The fall was the first of its kind in the history of Bank of America Stadium.

WSOC