Amusement park accidents
Encyclopedia
Amusement park accidents can result in serious injury or death to somebody visiting or working at an amusement park
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Most amusement park accidents are required to be reported to regulatory authorities. They usually fall into one of the following categories:
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission tracks statistics for all amusement ride accidents. These accidents occur at traveling carnivals, on portable inflatable attractions, and on fixed-site amusements such as roller coasters.
, SeaWorld Orlando
, Universal Orlando
, and Busch Gardens Africa
-- report quarterly details surrounding accidents and other incidents at their parks. A requirement for these reported incidents is that they are fatal incidents, or that the injured person required an overnight hospital visit. Four examples of the types of incidents that have been reported to Florida's Bureau of Fair Rides Inspection are listed here:
Employees injured at the parks are not reported.
According to the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), a trade association for permanent amusement park facilities, 300 million people visit amusement parks each year. The chance of an injury occurring in a park is 1 in 9 million.
From 2004 through 2009, the Orlando-area attractions that attracted the most guest lawsuits were:
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
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Most amusement park accidents are required to be reported to regulatory authorities. They usually fall into one of the following categories:
- Caused by negligenceNegligenceNegligence is a failure to exercise the care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in like circumstances. The area of tort law known as negligence involves harm caused by carelessness, not intentional harm.According to Jay M...
on the part of the guest. This can be refusal to follow specific ride safety instructions, or deliberate intent to break park rules. - The result of a guest's known or unknown health issues.
- NegligenceNegligenceNegligence is a failure to exercise the care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in like circumstances. The area of tort law known as negligence involves harm caused by carelessness, not intentional harm.According to Jay M...
on the part of the park, either by ride operator or maintenance. - Act of GodAct of GodAct of God is a legal term for events outside of human control, such as sudden floods or other natural disasters, for which no one can be held responsible.- Contract law :...
or a generic accident (e.g. slipping and falling), that is not a direct result of an action on anybody's part.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission tracks statistics for all amusement ride accidents. These accidents occur at traveling carnivals, on portable inflatable attractions, and on fixed-site amusements such as roller coasters.
Florida
All of Florida's major parks—which include the Walt Disney World ResortIncidents at Walt Disney World Resort
This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.Several people have died or been injured while riding attractions at Walt Disney World theme parks. Since 2001, Disney has been required to report incidents to state authorities...
, SeaWorld Orlando
Incidents at Busch parks
This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at various SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment-owned amusement parks, water parks or theme parks...
, Universal Orlando
Incidents at Universal parks
This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at various Universal-owned theme parks, amusement parks, or water parks. This list is not intended to be a comprehensive list of every such event, but only those that have a significant impact on the parks or park operations, or are...
, and Busch Gardens Africa
Incidents at Busch parks
This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at various SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment-owned amusement parks, water parks or theme parks...
-- report quarterly details surrounding accidents and other incidents at their parks. A requirement for these reported incidents is that they are fatal incidents, or that the injured person required an overnight hospital visit. Four examples of the types of incidents that have been reported to Florida's Bureau of Fair Rides Inspection are listed here:
- a 68-year-old woman fractured both legs and an arm while exiting the ride vehicle of Peter Pan's FlightPeter Pan's FlightPeter Pan's Flight is a suspended dark ride at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park theme parks. Located in Fantasyland, it is one of the few remaining attractions that was operational on Disneyland's opening day in 1955...
. - a 42-year-old man broke his left ankle while exiting the Kilimanjaro Safari ride vehicle.
- a 14-year-old girl broke her arm on the Camp Jurassic climbing nets.
- a 57-year-old man suffered chest pain while riding Revenge of the Mummy.
Employees injured at the parks are not reported.
According to the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), a trade association for permanent amusement park facilities, 300 million people visit amusement parks each year. The chance of an injury occurring in a park is 1 in 9 million.
From 2004 through 2009, the Orlando-area attractions that attracted the most guest lawsuits were:
- 7 lawsuits for Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw FallsDudley Do-Right's Ripsaw FallsDudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls is a log flume ride at Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida inspired by the Dudley Do-Right character created by cartoonists Jay Ward and Alex Anderson...
at Universal Orlando - 5 lawsuits for Mission: SpaceMission: SPACEMission: SPACE is a motion simulator thrill ride at Epcot. It simulates what an astronaut might experience aboard a spacecraft on a mission to Mars, from the higher g-force of blastoff to the speculative hypersleep....
at EpcotEpcotEpcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named... - 3 lawsuits for The Black Hole, a water slide at Wet 'n WildWet 'n WildWet 'n Wild is a chain of United States water parks founded by Seaworld creator George Millay in Orlando, Florida in 1977. The Wet 'n Wild name is currently branded onto two water parks owned by different companies: Wet 'n Wild Orlando, operated by Universal Parks & Resorts under the Wet 'n Wild...
; Popeye & Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges at Islands of AdventureIslands of AdventureUniversal's Islands of Adventure is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened May 28, 1999 as part of an expansion that, along with CityWalk Entertainment District, the Portofino Bay Hotel, and Hard Rock hotel, converted Universal Studios Florida into the Universal Orlando Resort...
; and Rock 'n' Roller CoasterRock 'n' Roller CoasterRock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith is an enclosed steel roller coaster ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort and at the Walt Disney Studios Park in Disneyland Paris...
at Disney's Hollywood StudiosDisney's Hollywood StudiosDisney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s...
. - 2 lawsuits each for eleven other rides at area attractions.
2007
- In the first quarter of 2007, Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando, Wet ‘n Wild and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay reported no serious incidents on their rides. Disney reported four.
- In the 2nd quarter of 2007, only five significant incidents occurred at the major Orlando and Tampa Bay area theme parks. This marked the first time in five quarters that a fatality was not reported by those parks.
- In the 3rd quarter of 2007, eight serious injuries were reported at the major Orlando and Tampa Bay area theme parks..
- In the 4th quarter of 2007, three injuries and one death were reported at the major Orlando and Tampa Bay area theme parks..
2006
- In the fourth quarter of 2006, Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando, Wet ‘n Wild and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay reported no serious injuries or illnesses on rides in their fourth-quarter filings. Disney reported 6 incidents, ranging from a guest's dizziness upon exiting a ride to a broken foot at Typhoon Lagoon.
- In the second quarter of 2006, there were 12 reported cases of serious injuries or illnesses out of the millions of people who visited the various parks and resorts.
- Disney reported nine cases. Among them were: two deaths; a man who swallowed too much water at Typhoon Lagoon; three women who fell and broke their hips or suffered other injuries; two men with chest pains; and a boy who fainted at Blizzard Beach.
- During that same time period, Universal Orlando reported one case: a woman with chest pain, numbness in an arm, and other symptoms.
- SeaWorld and Busch Gardens reported no cases during the quarter.
- Busch Gardens' Adventure Island water park reported two cases of people complaining of injuries.
2005
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission:- There were more than 15,000 amusement ride-related injuries in 2005 in the U.S.
2003
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported the following in 2003:- From 1987 to 2000, there were an estimated 4.5 amusement ride-related deaths per year.
- There were 3 deaths in 2003, 2 deaths in 2002, and 3 deaths in 2001.
External links
- International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions
- Amusement Safety Organization, Inc. Amusement park safety
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
- Searchable database of Central Florida amusement park accidents From the Orlando Sentinel, covers the quarterly government reports made by Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando, Wet 'n Wild and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.