It’s a parent’s worst nightmare. You take your child to an amusement park for a day of fun in the sun and are forced to leave because of a horrific accident. Horrific may be an understatement for the parents of a 13-year-old girl whose feet were severed Thursday when a thrill ride malfunctioned at the Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom Amusement Park in Louisville.
According to news reports, a broken cable wrapped around the teen’s feet and cut them off while she was free falling on the park’s “Superman Tower of Power” ride. Police say the teen is recovering at a local hospital. For those of you unfamiliar with the ride (I wrote about it in a previous blog), passengers are lifted to 177 feet, suspended momentarily and then dropped straight down at more than 50 miles-an-hour. Witnesses say in this incident, crowds of people saw the ride’s cable snap just as the passengers reached the 170-foot mark.
One witness told TV reporters: “I seen the car go up. Then, like, the cable broke, I heard — pwchh — the cable went under the car — and I seen it pull up and hit a lot of people — and I seen them bring their legs up.”
Other witnesses say the gruesome discovery wasn’t made until after the ride came to a complete stop and loved ones raced to find members of their group.
Some visitors say the incident has made them swear off traveling to amusement parks. While others say they won’t let an isolated case stop them from returning. Personally, I’m not sure how I would feel. I suppose if I was one of the people who actually witnessed the accident I would be a bit wearier about returning. I happen to live 90 minutes away from Six Flags Great America, which has a ride similar to the “Superman Tower of Power,” only it’s called the “Giant Drop.” Frankly, just looking at the ride makes my stomach ache so I never get on it. However, several members of my family love the ride and will wait for up to an hour in line just to experience a single drop.
Yesterday, the “Giant Drop” at Six Flags Great America was closed. Riders weren’t told why it was not in operation, but I’m sure those who were aware of what happened to the teen in Kentucky could figure it out.
Executives at Six Flags Great America and Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom will not say when the “Superman Tower of Power” or the “Giant Drop” will re-open. Currently, investigators in Kentucky are trying to figure out what caused the cable to snap. Until they pinpoint the exact problem, officials say the company won’t take any chances by operating the rides.
Does the incident make you think twice about visiting an amusement park?
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