30 Injured After Pillow Fight Turned Violent
It’s all fun and games until someone gets hit in the face with a pillow case full of door knobs.
An annual pillow fight at the U.S. Military Academy went south when 30 cadets were injured after several pillow cases were loaded with hard objects.
Over two dozen cadets sustained concussions during the August 20 free-for-all. West Point spokesman Lt. Col. Christopher Kasker told the New York Times that all of the cadets have returned to duty.
“West Point applauds the cadets’ desire to build sprit and regrets the injuries to our cadets. ‘We are conducting appropriate investigations into the causes of the injuries,” Kasker later said.
This was the first confirmation of the injuries, after photos and videos have made their way around the internet for the last two weeks. The images hit social media, and showed the cadets with blood flowing from their faces, an others proudly showing off their blood-covered pillow cases
Concussions weren’t the only injuries sustained, as others were reported to have broken legs, dislocated shoulders, and several other wounds.
According to the New York Times story, several of the cadets shoved helmets, body armor, and other items into their pillows in an effort to maximize the damage delivered to their opponents.
US elite military academy annual pillow fight ends in brawl http://t.co/0MEUeG2rdL pic.twitter.com/BbkbY3Ov8B
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) September 5, 2015
The fight took place at the central court yard of the academy’s training barracks, and shows the cadets wearing body armor and helmets to protect themselves. The group rushed from each angle before annihilating one another with the unpredictably violent weapons. Upperclassmen are supposed to oversee the annual pillow fight, while the freshman participate in the war.
The pillow fight is not endorsed officially by West Point, but it has been allowed in previous years as it’s seen as a bonding tool for the soldiers. There is actually evidence that the tradition goes all the way back to 1897.
When asked if there were any plans for West Point to step in and prevent the tradition from happening in the future, Kasker said there weren’t. In addition to this, Kasker also said that nobody will be punished for the injuries sustained. In 2013, the fight was canceled after a cadet had put a lock box in his pillow case in 2012, which caused several injuries.
What are your thoughts? Should West Point ban the pillow fight in the future? Let us know.
[Image via Dan Kitwood/Getty Images]
