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Body-numbing cold hospitalized 15 during Chiefs-Dolphins playoff game

The official temperature when the game began was minus 4, with a wind chill factor of minus 27, marking one of the coldest games in NFL history.
A Kansas City Chiefs fan is bundled up while watching warmups before an NFL wild-card playoff football game.
Posted at 7:39 PM, Jan 15, 2024

There's sweater weather, bring a jacket weather and wear every piece of clothing you can fit in weather.

But for some Chiefs fans, even layers upon layers of clothes, jacket and coats were not enough to keep them safely warm.

The Kansas City, Missouri Fire Department reported Monday that their crews responded to 69 calls on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium property, according to a department spokesman.

The effects of the cold sent 15 people to hospitals.

Seven of those victims suffered from hypothermia, three needed hospital treatment for frostbite and five others had various concerns, the department spokesperson said.

The official temperature when the game began was minus 4, with a wind chill factor of 27 degrees below zero, according to the Chiefs' game summary. The National Weather Service reported wind gusts of up to 25 mph during the game.

The game was considered the coldest in Arrowhead Stadium history. The game was also among the 10 coldest in NFL history. 

The coldest game in NFL history was the NFL Championship Game on Dec. 31, 1967 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay when temperatures dropped to negative 13. The coldest wind chill in NFL history was the AFC Championship Game on Jan. 10, 1982, in Cincinnati. There the wind chill hit negative 59 as the air temperature was minus 9.

The official attendance on Saturday was listed as 71,492.

This article was originally published by Steve Kaut for Scripps News Kansas City.