The Metrodome Collapsed This Week 7 Years Ago

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — On Saturday, Dec. 11, 2010 the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metro area was pounded with more than 17 inches of snow. Inside the walls of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome — which no longer stands today except in the memories of Minnesota sports fans — a Fox news crew was setting up cameras for the Vikings' Monday matchup against the New York Giants. The game was originally scheduled for Sunday, but it was postponed due to concerns about the roof.

The Fox crew noticed water leaking from the roof and decided to leave their cameras on throughout the night. In the early hours of Dec. 12, the weight of the snow punctured a massive hole in the nearly 30-year-old teflon roof, causing an avalanche onto the field. No one was injured.

The day before the collapse, Metrodome crews hosed hot water on the roof to melt the snow. But low temperatures turned that water into ice, Roy Terwilliger, the chairman of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission at the time, told the Star Tribune.

The Vikings, who were already eliminated from playoff contention, were forced to play their final home game at Ford Field in Detroit.

After numerous inspections, stadium officials announced in February 2011 the Metrodome's entire roof needed to be replaced. The stadium's repairs would not be complete until August 2011.

The Metrodome roof unintentionally collapsed five times in the stadium's history, four of which occurred in the 1980s. When it happened, it sounded like "the sky is actually falling," reports the Christian Science Monitor.

The Metrodome roof was purposefully collapsed for a sixth and final time in 2014, when crews were preparing to demolish the 32-year-old stadium. U.S. Bank Stadium, which has a fixed roof, now stands in its place.

Photo credit: AP Photo/Ann Heisenfelt