Fans are in a frenzy over a video purported to show the famous NFL quarterback drew breeze Getting struck by lightning while filming a commercial.
the former new orleans saints Quarterback tweeted on Monday that he was “excited to fly to a top-secret location” later in the week where he will film a promo for PointsBet, a Play Betting app that markets itself as “the ultimate sportsbook for all things NFL” in the US.
Mr Breeze was apparently filming a commercial for a sports betting company Venezuela near the Catatumbo River, an area that sees large lightning bolts displays an average of 297 days a year, according to a analysis Published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.
The unverified Twitter video, which purported to show an apparent lightning strike, has been viewed nearly 400,000 times since it was shared on Friday morning. Mr. Breeze can be seen in the foreground of the video wearing a sweater with the number zero, while the iconic wave of lightning can be seen on a Venezuelan river in the background.
A moment later, a large flash appears on the camera, with the camera falling to the ground and a woman screaming.
Hours after the video went viral, several credible sports journalists reported that Mr. Breeze was unharmed and was not electrocuted – leading to speculation that the clip was an elaborate PR stunt.
Pointsbet did not confirm whether the legendary football star was killed in the filming of the ad, but wrote in a statement on Twitter on Friday morning that the company was “aware of media coverage regarding Pointsbet brand ambassador Drew Brees.”
“We are in communication with the Breeze team and will continue to monitor developments over the coming hours. At this stage we will have no further comment,” said the company, which is known for running promotions for “lightning stakes”. Is.
Mr. Breeze’s team has not commented on the incident.
ESPN reporter for the New Orleans Saints, Katherine Terrell, tweeted Friday morning, shortly after reports began online that she was in communication with the former NFL star and that he was indeed “fine.”
“I just texted Drew Brees. He said he was fine and was not struck by lightning,” Ms Terrell tweeted.
More sources covering the New Orleans football team began sharing posts later Friday morning that contradicted the viral video’s narrative, also claiming the NFL star was “fine” and simply in a viral publicity stunt. was stuck.
New Orleans tweeted, “He’s fine.”
“Drew Brees is fine. Nothing to worry about in that video this morning,” tweeted Luke Johnson of NOLA.com.