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Super Bowl fans collapse at train station

 
Published Feb. 3, 2014

SECAUCUS, N.J. — Several people collapsed at an overcrowded train station while waiting in long lines to get to the Super Bowl on Sunday.

Emergency medical workers had to push through the overheated crowd to treat the people at Secaucus Junction.

Long lines came to a standstill in front of airport-style security machines that could not handle the volume. People were squeezed together in an enclosed stairwell.

Fan chants of "Seahawks" and "Broncos" gave way to profane chants about New Jersey.

About 28,000 riders used New Jersey Transit trains. That was nearly double the projection by organizers and about 6,000 more than the previous record (for a 2009 U2 concert). For an average Giants or Jets game, it's about 8,000.

It didn't get any better after the game. A second platform had to be opened to accommodate the crowds.

An announcement on the stadium scoreboard asked fans to stay due to congestion. New Jersey State Police urged fans, via Twitter, to "enjoy the stadium atmosphere until congestion dissipates." And two hours after the game, with fans still at the stadium, New Jersey Transit started sending buses to take fans to New York.

Still quiet: Last week, Seattle RB Marshawn Lynch kept interviews and answers during them short. He continued that after the game:

• On if the win was the best day of his life: "Next to being born."

• On winning the Super Bowl: "Dream come true."

• On his touchdown: "Kicked it all off, boss."

He used six sentences about not celebrating the win on the field: "They know how I feel about it. This is big time. This has been a tradition since I came; since forever. It's just what I do. Everybody knows it. They respect it."

Weather no issue: The National Weather Service said the high of 53 was 10-15 degrees above normal and nine below the record of 62 set in 1973. The Super Bowl's coldest kickoff is 39 at New Orleans' Tulane Stadium for Super Bowl VI Jan. 16, 1972. But snow is supposed to hit today — about 4-6 inches.

Interrupted: An unidentified man jumped onto the podium during MVP Malcolm Smith's news conference, took the microphone and screamed about the Sept. 11 attacks.

Smith remained still when the man suddenly appeared on his right side.

"Investigate 9/11. 9/11 was per­petrated by people with your own government," the man said.

He quickly walked away, and security converged on him. It wasn't immediately clear if he was taken into custody.

Lone dissenter: Broncos QB Peyton Manning received 49 of 50 votes from a media panel in winning the MVP award Saturday. The dissenter was former Pittsburgh and Chicago QB Jim Miller, who works for SiriusXM NFL Radio and voted for Patriots QB Tom Brady.

"He is the offensive player of the year," he said. "But having played the position, when I looked at who had the most value to his team … Tom Brady carried that team the same way Adrian Peterson carried Minnesota last year."

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Sapp poorer: Warren Sapp, who filed for bankruptcy in 2012, lost a $100,000 bet to rapper Rick Ross on the outcome of the game, Sapp taking the Broncos, according to the celebrity gossip website tmz.com. The website posted video of the bet being made. Ross tweeted about the bet but left out the amount.