How did it happen? Alvin's 600 pound Nolan Ryan statue falls

ALVIN, Texas (KTRK) -- The life-sized bronze-cast statue of baseball legend Nolan Ryan toppled over outside Alvin City Hall this weekend, sparking a mystery.

"As you come in, you see 'Hometown of Nolan Ryan.' He's a big part of Alvin's history," city secretary Dixie Roberts said. "A resident called it in on Saturday to our police department saying it fell."

At the time, it wasn't clear what happened. Tyler Hornback, a barber who works across the street from city hall, said it's been the source of much debate.

"Since Saturday, it's all we've been talking about around here," Hornback said.

He said many people around town have theories about the statue's disappearance.

"We think someone ran it over to knock it over. Because I don't think someone just went over and pushed it," he said.

The right foot is all that remains. Roberts said it seems like a maintenance issue was to blame. The statue's been there with all 600 pounds resting on one foot since 1992.

Then, a witness emerged who helped shed light on its last moments upright.

Shelly Ewing said she happened to be passing by Saturday when it fell and she saw a family out taking pictures with it at the time.

"One of the girls put her arm around the statue and all the sudden it just went pow!" she said. "They didn't do anything wrong."

The last selfie with Alvin's most famous son was one too many.

Ewing stresses the family wasn't vandalizing the statue. She said it was the same type of picture taking that happens every day.

"She was so surprised," Ewing said.

The statue is being repaired and should be back in place soon, but no timeline is available, according to the city.

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