Rollercoaster death

[midgar8784]

This is down here by me....

http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/19/us/texas-roller-coaster-death


(CNN) -- A woman died Friday while riding the Texas Giant roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, according to a statement released by the theme park.

The park did not detail release any details about how the woman died on the Texas Giant, touted as the tallest steel-hybrid roller coaster in the world.

"Since the safety of our guests and employees in our number one priority, the ride has been closed pending further investigation," the statement said.

The Arlington Police Department did not immediately respond to a CNN request for comment.

The Texas Giant was originally designed in 1990 as an all wooden roller coaster. It was redesigned with a steel track and reopened in April 2011 to mark the theme park's 50th anniversary.

At its highest point, the roller coaster is 153 feet and has a drop of 147 feet, according to the theme park.

Thousands of kids hurt yearly on amusement rides

Elsewhere, seven people suffered minor injuries in a boat-ride mishap at the Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, park officials said.

The incident occurred Friday evening when a boat rolled backwards down a lift hill on the Shoot the Rapids ride, park spokesman Bryan Edwards said in an e-mailed statement.

The seven people in the boat were evaluated and treated by Cedar Point emergency medical staff, Edwards said. One of the seven was taken to an area hospital for additional evaluation and was subsequently released, he said.

"Shoot the Rapids will remain closed until park officials and inspectors from the state of Ohio complete their review," Edwards said.

 

[oldbagfan]

All I can say is What A Way To Go!

There's probably not a single person who hasn't fantasized about what it would be like to fly out of the car as you're ripping down those big dips and turns, but nobody thinks it will actually happen. Except maybe on one of those rickety rides at county fairs. Taking your life in your hands to climb onto one of those Tilt-A-Whirls or Octopus contraptions. Close up look shows rust, loose/missing bolts and other horrors, but you don't expect shoddy construction at a place like Six Flags.

Lawsuit in 5, 4, 3 . . .

 

[oldbagfan]

All I can say is What A Way To Go!

There's probably not a single person who hasn't fantasized about what it would be like to fly out of the car as you're ripping down those big dips and turns, but nobody thinks it will actually happen. Except maybe on one of those rickety rides at county fairs. Taking your life in your hands to climb onto one of those Tilt-A-Whirls or Octopus contraptions. Close up look shows rust, loose/missing bolts and other horrors, but you don't expect shoddy construction at a place like Six Flags.

Lawsuit in 5, 4, 3 . . .

(I read one remark where the lady said she didn't think she was properly secured in the seat. You'd think you'd make SURE before they started up . . .)

 

[Dwight Schrute]

I have no idea how this happened.

As being fortunate enough to hit Disney and Sea World in the last 8 months and being at Canobie the day this happened I know the serious rides do not rely on a seatbelt type restraint. It's a mechanical over-the-head metal safety bar contraption that presses tight to your torso. They all seem to engage simultaneously. I don't know how a singular failure could take place.

 

[midgar8784]

I have no idea how this happened.

As being fortunate enough to hit Disney and Sea World in the last 8 months and being at Canobie the day this happened I know the serious rides do not rely on a seatbelt type restraint. It's a mechanical over-the-head metal safety bar contraption that presses tight to your torso. They all seem to engage simultaneously. I don't know how a singular failure could take place.

Having rode this ride, this is a over the lap restraint bar...basically witnesses said they heard theirs click 3 times and hers clicked once, she mentioned it to the people working the ride and they said it was ok. They also said the ride would not go if one was loose....so either thats correct or something malfunctioned....someone is getting sued.

 

[Coltsfan2theend]

The computers in the ride wouldn't let the ride go out without the restraint being okay. I won't speculate beyond that.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

Having rode this ride, this is a over the lap restraint bar...basically witnesses said they heard theirs click 3 times and hers clicked once, she mentioned it to the people working the ride and they said it was ok. They also said the ride would not go if one was loose....so either thats correct or something malfunctioned....someone is getting sued.

I bet it doesn't reopen until its reconfigured with the restraint I'm speaking of.

Sounds a bit too hairy for a simple lap bar.

 

[midgar8784]

The computers in the ride wouldn't let the ride go out without the restraint being okay. I won't speculate beyond that.

Thats even worse, that means something really malfunctioned....I would almost feel better if they just did not put her in the right way, now you can be on a ride and everything looks ok and still fly out. Although people around here did say that something was wrong before they took off, that her bar did not click 3 times, only once. I know what they are saying, when its pushed down, it makes 3 clicking sounds. They also walk down the row and pull up on all of the bars to make sure they are secure...not sure if they did that on this one.

 

[Coltsfan2theend]

I know procedures on coasters for checking restraints. When Sarah and I are riding a coaster, I get three clicks on a lap bar while Sarah gets maybe six. I don't know how the restraints work on that coaster (how they release or anything), but I do know Six Flags and how they work on checking restraints. They do pull on every restraint, that is procedure. In fact, I know that some ride ops actually "staple" (push lap bars to the point of being uncomfortable) at some Six Flag parks. I don't know what the issue was here on the ride in question, could the restraint have failed, could the computer failed to recognize the restraint wasn't fully closed and okay, etc?

 

[patfan64]

Another near tragedy on the same day at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Latest...ccident-Log-flume-ride-malfunctions-injures-7

I'm taking the family here on August 4. Yikes!!!!

 

[midgar8784]

Another near tragedy on the same day at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Latest...ccident-Log-flume-ride-malfunctions-injures-7

I'm taking the family here on August 4. Yikes!!!!

This clears me, before when I did not ride the scary rides I was just called a wimp, now I can say, well they are dangerous.

 

[Seuss]

Another near tragedy on the same day at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Latest...ccident-Log-flume-ride-malfunctions-injures-7

I'm taking the family here on August 4. Yikes!!!!

I'll be there w/ my family tomorrow. I live about 45 minutes from there. Great park for coasters. Assuming the seat-belts work . . .

 

[oldbagfan]

I'll be there w/ my family tomorrow. I live about 45 minutes from there. Great park for coasters. Assuming the seat-belts work . . .

Take along a parachute, just to be on the safe side.

 

[midgar8784]

Take along a parachute, just to be on the safe side.

That would not have mattered, her death was more.....well lets just say she did not miss many objects int he path of where she flew off to where she landed.

 

[oldbagfan]

That would not have mattered, her death was more.....well lets just say she did not miss many objects int he path of where she flew off to where she landed.

You're so literal, Middy. I fear you miss out on a lot of levity in life.

:Homer:

 

[midgar8784]

You're so literal, Middy. I fear you miss out on a lot of levity in life.

:Homer:

Well I guess I miss the levity of someone dying.

 

[Coltsfan2theend]

The Cedar Point incident, sadly, a few friends of mine questioned the safety features of that ride (specifically the anti roll back features). In a coaster, you have things like this.

The mountain things next to the chain lift will stop a ride vehicle from rolling back more then what it would before it caught one of those parts. This is also the clicking you hear when you go up coasters. Some coasters use magnets as anti roll backs. I have no idea how Shoot the Rapids works for anti roll backs, but it didn't work. More scary to me is that the boat shouldn't have overturned when it hit the canal leading up to the lift. Holiday World has a closely similar ride, but it doesn't have the traditional lift hill like StR. It uses elevators instead of a lift hill.

The only bad part is that the ride has broken down with riders at the top and the brakes didn't release. Another thing is that I heard Cedar Point isn't really known for their rides being big people friendly. I think ride manufacturers need to make more of an effort to do this. Big people like to ride rides also, sometimes, they may eat very little but because of genetics, they are just big. My gut is big, but that is a personal problem I hope to fix within three years. I have already been to a ride I couldn't ride because of it (stupid safety belt, the harness was good, the belt wasn't).

As for Texas Giant, there is a lot of unanswered questions there. Why did the ride computer say it was good to go if the restraint wasn't secure? The riders size was also an issue, but because of previous law suits, if you tell someone that they can't ride, they might sue (some have).

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/...kicked-off-aquaman-spashdown-water-ride.html/

I see the parks side, because if something happened and he was allowed to ride, he or his family might sue the park. Most rides have rules saying about how you can only ride in certain issues.

 

[midgar8784]

The Cedar Point incident, sadly, a few friends of mine questioned the safety features of that ride (specifically the anti roll back features). In a coaster, you have things like this.

The mountain things next to the chain lift will stop a ride vehicle from rolling back more then what it would before it caught one of those parts. This is also the clicking you hear when you go up coasters. Some coasters use magnets as anti roll backs. I have no idea how Shoot the Rapids works for anti roll backs, but it didn't work. More scary to me is that the boat shouldn't have overturned when it hit the canal leading up to the lift. Holiday World has a closely similar ride, but it doesn't have the traditional lift hill like StR. It uses elevators instead of a lift hill.

The only bad part is that the ride has broken down with riders at the top and the brakes didn't release. Another thing is that I heard Cedar Point isn't really known for their rides being big people friendly. I think ride manufacturers need to make more of an effort to do this. Big people like to ride rides also, sometimes, they may eat very little but because of genetics, they are just big. My gut is big, but that is a personal problem I hope to fix within three years. I have already been to a ride I couldn't ride because of it (stupid safety belt, the harness was good, the belt wasn't).

As for Texas Giant, there is a lot of unanswered questions there. Why did the ride computer say it was good to go if the restraint wasn't secure? The riders size was also an issue, but because of previous law suits, if you tell someone that they can't ride, they might sue (some have).

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/...kicked-off-aquaman-spashdown-water-ride.html/

I see the parks side, because if something happened and he was allowed to ride, he or his family might sue the park. Most rides have rules saying about how you can only ride in certain issues.

Not sure you can sue the part if you are not allowed to ride....the part regulates the rules of the park, not the state not anyone. If they post something and do not let you ride, you do not have much of a case. parts regulate themselves, so what they say goes....pretty sure in this case though, nobody told her not to ride.

 

[Coltsfan2theend]

You can sue as long as you find a lawyer willing to do it and hope they settle out of court. You run the risk of losing, did you even read the link I linked to where someone with no hands sued Six Flags Over Texas for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act? Also, in the Texas Giant case, something went wrong, was it the woman's size, the computer saying the trains were good to go when they weren't, restraint failing. etc?

Also in the northeast, a park let a double amputee ride a coaster and he was thrown from it and killed. The family was thinking about or is suing the park for allowing him to ride. Frankly, if the double amputee was wearing pants, I bet they didn't know he was one. My cousin doesn't have any feet and if she is wearing long pants you would never know it with her prosthetic.

 

[midgar8784]

You can sue as long as you find a lawyer willing to do it and hope they settle out of court. You run the risk of losing, did you even read the link I linked to where someone with no hands sued Six Flags Over Texas for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act? Also, in the Texas Giant case, something went wrong, was it the woman's size, the computer saying the trains were good to go when they weren't, restraint failing. etc?

Well I know you can sue for anything, I am just saying that parks are allowed to regulate themselves, the state does not make the rules for the park, so suing them would not always work out to a win. I mean a guy with no legs cannot play Qb for the NFL, does that mean he should sue them?