4 fatal amusement park accidents in recent memory

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Are roller coasters safe? | USA NOW

Natalie DiBlasio hosts USA NOW on recent roller coaster accidents and ride safety.

New York is one of the 42 states that have a state department in charge of amusement ride inspections.

The department requires and inspects every amusement ride before it is allowed to operate. This includes traveling amusement rides, where inspections are required in every location.

More: How to know if your favorite ride actually passed inspection

Even with inspections, it is always important to be cautious around rides.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates there were 29,400 hospital emergency department visits for amusement attractions in 2017.

CPSC is also aware of 22 fatalities associated with amusement attractions since 2010. This number excludes work-related incidents and fatalities at water parks or water slides.

Here are a few amusement ride accidents in recent memory:

July 2011, Darien Lake, Genesee County

The infamous 2011 incident is often the first roller coaster accident that comes to mind in western New York. 

Army veteran James Hackemer was a 29-year-old war veteran. Hackemer was a double-amputee who lost both legs in a roadside bomb explosion in Iraq. Hackemer’s mother said he was insistent on riding every single ride at Darien Lake amusement park, including The Ride of Steel which the park says is one of the tallest roller coasters east of the Mississippi River.

Hackemer was killed when he was thrown from the coaster after witnesses said he raised his arms.

Hackemer should never have been allowed on the Ride of Steel, according to amusement park safety expert Bill Avery.

“My rule of thumb, when I was in the business, ‘When in doubt, out,’ ” Avery said. “You just can’t take that kind of gamble … if you don’t know clearly what it is you’re dealing with.”

After the incident, the Ride of Steel was closed for the remainder of the 2011 amusement park season.

July 2017, Columbus, Ohio

A day at The Ohio State Fair turned tragic when a ride malfunctioned.

The Fire Ball — a swinging, rotating ride with bright, fiery colors emblazoned on its six tentacle-like arms — fell apart. As its pendulum swung back and forth, it appeared to scrape the ground. A seat carrying four people ripped off into the air; two people were thrown out of the seat in mid-air. 

 “The ride broke and people went flying,” one woman kept repeating to a 911 operator.   

Tyler Jarrell, 18, from Columbus, who just five days earlier enlisted in the Marine Corps, died from his injuries after the accident. Seven others were also injured.

August 2016, Kansas City, Kansas 

The Kansas waterslide that killed a 10 year-old boy will be demolished

The Verrückt waterslide will be destroyed.
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The Verrückt waterslide, at the Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, which stands at 168 feet and 7 inches, is the world’s tallest waterslide. However, the Verrückt has not been operating since a tragic accident in 2016.

Ten-year-old Caleb Schwab’s raft went airborne while he was on the waterslide; his raft hit a pole and protection netting. Caleb died from a neck injury.

The incident resulted in the waterpark’s operators being indicted on criminal charges in March 2018. 

“Experts in the field of amusement ride design and safety examined Verrückt and found physical evidence which indicated that other rafts had gone airborne and collided with the overhead hoops and netting before the fatality,” the indictment alleged. “These experts noted that Verrückt’s design violated nearly all aspects” of longstanding industry safety standards.

The waterpark plans on disassembling the waterslide later this year.

May 2016, Arlington, Texas

Six Flags Over Texas, an amusement park located in Arlington, Texas, was the site of a terrifying accident in 2016.

Rosa Ayala-Goana of Dallas was riding the Texas Giant, which the park brags includes the “worlds steepest drop.” After having concerns about how she was strapped into the ride, Ayala-Goana fell from the roller coaster. She did not survive the fall.  

Carmen Brown of Arlington was waiting in line as the victim was being secured in the ride. She told The Dallas Morning News the woman had expressed concerns to a park employee that she was not secured correctly in her seat.

“He was basically nonchalant,” Brown said. “He was, like, ‘As long as you heard it click, you’re fine.’ Hers was the only one that went down once, and she didn’t feel safe. But they let her still get on the ride.”

The Texas Giant is still running today.

This story includes reporting by Jessie Balmert, Randy Tucker and Michael James.

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