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    Piece of Metal Falls Off Scoreboard, Onto Fans in Stands at French Open

    Kyle Newport@@KyleNewportFeatured ColumnistJune 2, 2015

    People remove a screen panel which fell on a stand of center court as France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga plays Japan's Kei Nishikori during their quarterfinal match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium, Tuesday, June 2, 2015 in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
    Thibault Camus/Associated Press

    A scary scene unfolded at the 2015 French Open on Tuesday when a large piece of metal fell off the scoreboard and landed in the stands.

    The incident occurred during a quarterfinal match between Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Kei Nishikori. During the second set, a piece of metal paneling fell off the top of the scoreboard, hit something on its way down and landed where spectators were sitting:

    Steph Trudel @TrudelSteph

    The incident http://t.co/p7NQHP8joI

    Check out the item that fell:

    Broadcast Sound @broadcast_sound

    This just fell off the roof of the #Chatrier at #RolandGarros during the #Tsonga #Nishikori match #FrenchOpen http://t.co/kQ9Rwc7PFs

    Roland Garros released a statement regarding the incident:

    Roland-Garros @rolandgarros

    A sheet of metal fell from the scoreboard onto members of the public, three of whom sustained minor injuries.

    It's very fortunate that just three people suffered injuries—and only minor ones at that. Considering the size of the piece of metal, this situation could have been much, much worse.

    About 200 fans were subsequently removed from the section where the incident occurred:

    Roland-Garros @rolandgarros

    The area was secured and the match will recommence shortly. Spectators are taking their places in the stands. #LT

    Mark Brasser @brasser8

    Tribune op Chatrier wordt ontruimd nadat er een stuk scorebord in het publiek waaide... #RG15 http://t.co/hGF41071zx

    Piece of Metal Falls Off Scoreboard, Onto Fans in Stands at French Open
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    According to the Associated Press (via the Washington Post), the match was delayed for about 40 minutes. Both Tsonga and Nishikori left the court and went to the locker room during the delay. 

    [Twitter, YouTube; h/t USA Today's FTW]