How does someone fall from a rollercoaster?

[Sarahfromtheblock]

Another tragic fall by a child, age 6 or 7 (papers differ) from a rollercoaster in Lightwater Valley. I have never been and never been on any roller coaster.

Are these children too small and the seatbelts or whatever they have not fitting them correctly? Does the machinery beak down? How does it happen?

Why would he stand up?

Because he is 7 and 7 year olds are unpredictable. I do think from the descriptions of him hanging over the back of the car that he probably stood up or wasnt sat on the seat properly otherwise if he was sat properly he would be more likely to slip forwards than backwards. I'm not victim blaming he is 7 and the rides should be designed so this couldn't happen.

@watching, that's awful.
I used to visit oakwood Park regularly, especially when we visited bluestone but I haven't been for years and years. I don't trust it and it's gone grubby

I agree with the posters about the pirate ship ride - the one in skegness has a lap bar and you slide all over.
When you're almost vertical, it doesn't feel safe at all.

@ballsdeep it is very grubby. I have amazing memories of oakwood from when I was a child but there's no way I would visit after the death. Luckily my children are not interested in theme parks.

I had a similar Pirate Ship experience.Skinny teen alone on the row and there was too much room between me and the bar.Tried to tell the attendant but he was on to the next row ,did not hear me walked on and started the ride. It was very scary right at the top ,clinging on for dear life whilst looking straight down into the machinery

The original wooden roller coaster at Blackpool.Was alone in the back row . Just before the start the attendant pushed the bar down but somehow it did not lock down properly as i soon found out .Terrifying pushing myself back into the seat by keeping my feet firmly wedged against the floor and holding onto the freely moving lap bar holding it down to me the best i could.Told an attendant as soon as i got off (something wrong with the mechanism?). He couldn't care less

Oakwood scared me in general when I last visited about 5 years ago. It was so run down it concerned me. Trip advisor reviews don't seem to have it any better now.

This is the nearest theme park to us and mine go every year with school - its a treat for good attendance etc. Youngest is going in a few weeks. I have no idea how these things happen whether there is an error with the height check, the bar is not tight enough - we don't know until an investigation takes place.

I remember going to Blackpool pleasure beach on new year's eve when my kids were little and a few rides were open. There was a bus ride - where it goes around in a circle on a pivot and comes back down the other way. The operator looked like a complete knob and was just really nonchalant about everything - couldn't be arsed was my impression - its hard to describe really but I had a bad feeling about him. I heard screaming, he had got his foot caught when the ride started and it was trapped between the ride and the edge of the bus as it started to move. He paid the price for not watching and paying attention. These people in charge of my children is what petrifies me.

He paid the price for not watching and paying attention.

What a nasty attitude. Would you say this about other work related injuries? What about construction workers injured by machinery because of a moment's inattention?

The owners and managers of the park have a responsibility to have processes and safeguards in place to prevent injuries to both employees and users. They are the ones responsible.

And yes, one of those safeguards should be using trained experienced staff, and more than one operator per ride, rather than getting in the cheapest minimum wage labour they can. But they wouldn't do that because it's expensive.

He should have been explicitly trained on the dangers of the ride and know where to stand when operating it. He just appeared not to be paying attention to the people using the ride or his own whereabouts.

Bibirdie I had similar experience, magic carpet was the scariest ride I’ve ever been on. I kept slipping under the bar, my mum was having to hang onto me, it was scary for both of us. Sadly I believe a child died on it in the end

I'm another who had a bad experience on the magic carpet - I was tall but skinny. On the first movement I slid straight under the bar. My mum was clinging on for dear life as I was curled up in the foot space but no one noticed. I've never been so scared.

Years ago as a teenager in the 90's at Chessington we were on a pirate ship/magic carpet, whatever it is and my petit friend slipped upwards, my other friend and I both grabbed her and pulled her back into her seat and then held on to her. She didn't seem as bothered as we did! It really looked like she'd have fallen out.
My son was 7 on a rollercoaster in the USA, they had a seat adapter for him as the larger belt/bar system wouldn't have worked adequately.

This thread has brought back a horrible memory that I haven't thought about in years.

Anyone been on Ripsaw Falls flume ride at Islands of Adventure in Florida? I've just googled it and it got lap bars in the 'logs' in 2007. We went in 2006 - me and DH and all of DH's family, no DC at that time. Back then all that was inside the log was a bench thing that you sort of straddled, and held on with your knees.

We got on the ride - I was at the front of the log, BIL behind me and FIL behind him. BIL was in his 20s at the time and has mental health issues that the family don't like to talk about. As we got to the top of the final drop, BIL suddenly said "I can't do this", stood up and swung his leg out of the log. He just panicked at not having anything to hold on to. There was one of those emergency staff staircases, really narrow, down the side of the incline so I guess he was heading for that.

I swear FIL and I have never moved so fast. FIL stood up, swung him back in and pinned his shoulders down. I leant back and pinned his legs under my arms, and that's how we went down the big final drop. Fuck me my heart nearly stopped. When we got to the bottom the rest of the family had no idea because they were in a different log.

I swear to God this is what happened and you know what? Neither FIL or BIL have ever mentioned it in 12 years. That's weird, isn't it?

I can't even imagine what might have happened that day. I always wondered if there was CCTV of it that anyone saw, and it's very interesting that the lap bars went in the following year - I had no idea. I don't know why I wanted to share this story - still can't believe it happened really.

Rides are statistically so safe, I guess, but they have to be used properly. I do hope that poor little boy is OK.

How? Hex is a simulator that moves around twelve inches forwards very slowly.

It is a gentle forwards and back motion, but just being a long smooth seat, people do shuffle around, and I ended up with this person's body mass sliding over me. They had the kind of build where their thighs would be similar in size to my waist. I doubt they could have sat in the seating for Air, or if they could, it would have been with extreme discomfort for them.

The better rides from the American Adventure were sold off to other parks.

Bloody hell IHeartKingThistle 😱

I agree with the posters about the pirate ship ride - the one in skegness has a lap bar and you slide all over.
When you're almost vertical, it doesn't feel safe at all.

I’ve been on this dozens of times growing up. Never felt worried. It’s my closets “theme park”

I've never been on one of these rides and never will as I am terrified of heights.

I'm really struggling to square the general risk averse approach to parenting I observe now, and these hair raising tales of near-disaster - I just can't understand the attraction of paying to feel utterly terrified.

I can’t do any rides but my ds (9) loves them

This makes me think twice. I really feel for the mother, the fear she must have felt

Donkey actually Disneyworkd predominately uses Graduates schemes on one year placements to fill their positions lots of students coming over from all over America and some Europe
But they do feel safer we have had a awful water ride experience in Brighton where DD nearly fell out

The worst was at Chessington in the soft play area in Asia. It had a play area for the over 4s that shot out balls. One was out so they put a bucket over it and a post it note on it. A 4 year old pressed it the bucket shot up and hit DD on the head. She got concussion and spent 24 hrs in hospital under observation (was properly sick and confused with it)
I did complain not for compensation but because frankly I thought their health and safety was rubbish. But they didn’t care in the end I got £30 vouchers and some fast track which DD was happy with but never an apology or assurances that policy would be looked at

I can also confirm that 20 years ago the Tower of Terror in Florida only had a lap bar. I was in a row with a larger gentleman and it was a bit more scary than it should have been.

I’ve just read this -

‘When this little lad was born he survived against the odds, he has endured multiple heart operations throughout his little life, he has special needs, he lost his dad, he has just got out of hospital and went for a fun day out. Tragic as a word does not come close. I hope he pulls through that family has been through enough’

This makes me really worry

Oh no soola, that's just awful 😢