City of Tampa responds after Panthers fan hacks traffic sign with ‘obscene’ message near Amalie Arena
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — With both of Florida’s National Hockey League teams facing off in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the trash talk between Tampa and Miami is bound to pick up.
Heading into Saturday’s matchup, the Tampa Bay Lightning was down 0-3 to the Florida Panthers; however, with the City of Tampa on their back, the Lightning fought to stay alive with a 6-3 victory over the Miami team.
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Amalie Arena and downtown Tampa were filled with fans cheering in their Lightning gear, as Panthers’ fans sulked down the streets, but an alleged Panthers fan and “amateur” hacker thought they’d get the last laugh.
Despite the Lightning’s win, a traffic sign was manipulated to read, “Cats in 5” at the corner of Franklin Street and Brorein Street near the Tampa Convention Center and Amalie Arena — the Lightning’s home stadium.
“We can only assume this amateur hackery was done by a Panthers fan who was out way past his/her bedtime,” a spokesman with the City of Tampa told WFLA. “We have alerted the contractor who is correcting the frankly, obscene message.”
The spokesman said that all jokes aside, changing a traffic sign message can be dangerous as the messages on them are put in place for safety purposes.
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“Jokes aside, these kinds of acts can be dangerous because those signs and their alerts are in place for safety purposes. Thankfully, no damage was reported. Plus, everyone already knows it’s Lightning in 7,” the city said.
The Lightning (1-3) and Panthers (3-1) will face off in Game 5 of the series at 7 p.m. in Miami.
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