A 44-year-old woman is currently in critical condition suffering from a brain injury after she was struck by an “L-shaped” piece of metal that dislodged from a roller coaster at Cedar Point.
The woman was apparently waiting in line for the Top Thrill Dragster when the metal piece that is about the size of an adult male’s hand struck the back of her head.
Bystanders described the metal bracket as a giant Jenga block.
An 11-year-old boy was killed Sunday and three others suffered injuries on a water ride while visiting Adventureland Park in Altoona, Iowa.
According to reports, one child remains in critical condition and two others suffered minor injuries at the water park.
Here is a breakdown of what police believe happened: six riders boarded the Raging River raft ride when it overturned around 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Four of the riders were taken to the hospital. On Sunday, the park announced that they were “saddened” to find out that one of the riders (the 11-year-old boy) had died.
Busch Gardens and Adventure Island in Tampa Bay are starting their phased opening today with many new safety changes due to the coronavirus.
Guests are expected to see many new safety changes that were implemented in collaboration with park officials and health officials these last few months. The main concern is keeping all guests safe, according to reports.
So, what has changed?
Millions of people visit Disney World, Universal and Legoland safely every year, but every now and then serious injuries occur. Some of the most common injuries are slips, trips, or falls. In other cases, serious injuries occur on park rides, roller coasters, or attractions, causing permanent disability or wrongful death.
Disney World, Universal and Legoland Accidents and Injuries
A serious injury at Disney World, Universal or Legoland can ruin what was supposed to be a magical vacation. While accidents are going to happen, the park is not always to blame. But sometimes, severe injuries occur and it is the park’s fault for not protecting their guests safety. This is called negligence, and proving negligence is a critical factor in winning personal injury lawsuits. Because of this, it is essential to hire an experienced personal injury attorney who can prove that the theme or amusement park is at fault for your injury.
If you have a personal injury lawsuit for a Disney World, Universal or Legoland injury, you could be entitled to significant financial compensation for your pain and suffering, medical expenses, lost income, and more. Our Florida Amusement Park Injury Attorneys at Whittel & Melton can help you recover full and fair compensation for your suffering.
Disney World, Universal and Legoland Slips, Trips, and Falls
Slips, trips, and falls are some of the most common Disney World injuries. How can a slip, trip, or fall injury occur at Disney World, Universal and Legoland? There are many scenarios that can play out and cause these injuries. A fountain may have sprayed water onto a slippery surface causing a small child to sip and fall. Maybe a drink spilled at a restaurant area and employees neglected to clean it up in a timely manner, creating a hazard. Falls can happen on ramps or stairs that lack handrails or in the slippery boarding areas for water rides. The list of potential dangers goes on and on.
A serious slip, trip, or fall can result in the following injuries:
Ride Injuries at Disney World, Universal and Legoland
Some of the most serious and deadly accident injuries take place on Disney World, Universal and Legoland rides, roller coasters, and other attractions within the park. These injuries can happen when rides have design flaws, they malfunction due to poor maintenance, or because employees fail to follow proper safety procedures. An amusement park injury on a ride could lead to severe injury, permanent disability, or death.
What constitutes negligence at a theme park?
Reporting an Injury Claim
If you are injured at Disney World, Universal or Legoland, you should immediately report the injury to a park employee as soon as possible. While this is not necessarily required to make a claim, an incident report will confirm that you were injured on Disney’s property. This could definitely be reliable evidence for your injury claim.
Seek Medical Attention
Disney World, Universal and Legoland has medical centers where staff can tend to any injuries. They can also call an ambulance in the event of a more serious injury. Making sure your injuries are documented is critical to obtaining financial compensation from Disney, Universal or Legoland.
Watch What You Say
When you make an injury claim with Disney, Universal or Legoland, their representatives may try to get you to give a formal recorded statement. During these statements, they will ask you about the incident and your injuries. Remember, these reps will use anything you say against you in the event your case does not settle. They will be looking for ways to hold you responsible for your injuries and keep the blame off of them. It is best to have an attorney help you with your case before you provide a statement of any kind. Our Florida Amusement Park Injury Attorneys at Whittel & Melton can make sure you don’t say anything that can be misconstrued and make you look to be at-fault.
Don’t Negotiate By Yourself
Disney, Universal and Legoland adjusters negotiate for a living. Do not expect to go head to head with them and win, as you are not an adjuster. They know exactly what questions to ask to minimize your settlement amount, or how to talk you into agreeing to a lowball settlement when your case is worth far more.
A log ride at a California amusement park malfunctioned and flipped over on May 25, leaving a woman critically injured and her husband and child also harmed.
The incident occurred at Castle Park in Riverside on the Log Ride, which, according to the park’s website, features a 48-foot drop.
Riverside Fire Department officials said they were called to the park at 4:37 p.m. and that the three members of one family were tossed into the water after something went haywire with the log they were riding in and overturned.
According to witnesses at the scene, a 10-year-old boy injured in the incident appeared to suffer a cut to his ear and head injuries, while his father suffered scrapes to his arm and back.
Fire department officials said a mechanical problem with a ride’s water pump apparently caused the accident.
An investigation is underway by the California Department of Health and Safety to determine the exact cause of the malfunction.
The Log Ride was immediately shut down. A spokeswoman for the Castle Park did say that the ride had been inspected earlier Saturday and nothing was found wrong.
Most amusement parks have their own water parks or pools for patrons, or at least some type of water ride. These wet zones are very popular in Florida, where it is pretty warm year round. While these water attractions are a great way to “beat the heat,” a ride down the water slide or a dip in the wave pool can lead to serious accidents and injuries. If an amusement or theme park is negligent when it comes to cleaning, inspecting, maintaining, or supervising water rides and the people using them, and someone is injured or killed as a result, then the park can be held financially responsible for the damages incurred by all victims involved.
When you choose to visit an amusement park or water park, you expect that park owners, operators, maintenance workers, and other employees will do everything they can, within reason, to ensure all guests remain safe. And while most visits will be free of incident, the reality is that many theme park and water parks have been the sites of accidents in the past.
If your injury, or a loved one’s death, was caused by another person’s negligence, the most common theory under which a case of this type is usually brought is called premises liability. Under Florida law, there are three types of people that may enter someone else’s property: invitees, licensees, and trespassers. Invitees are those who come for business reasons, licensees are there for their own business, and trespassers are on the property without permission. Florida law clearly states that each type of visitor is owed a different duty of care from the owner or operator. A guest at a theme park or water park would be classified as an invitee of the business, and they are owed the highest duty of care.
A property owner has a duty to make sure their invitees are safe on their land, which means making at least a reasonable effort to warn them of any conditions or hazards that could pose a threat to their well being. Failing to make reasonably safe accommodations to invitees can give rise to a premises liability case when the victim(s) can show that a dangerous hazard was not warned for sufficiently.
Anyone can easily become a victim when a water park or amusement park fails to take reasonable safety precautions. Injuries that can be caused by water ride accidents include:
Certain injuries sustained may never fully heal, and can completely alter the course of a person’s life forever. These injuries can lead to a loss of physical capabilities, cause ongoing emotional distress and mental anguish, and require costly medical treatment. Some injuries may require around the clock care or permanent supervision.
An Epcot patron is suing Walt Disney, alleging negligence caused a ride to malfunction and cause injuries.
The complaint was filed Feb. 1 in Orange County Circuit Court against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. Inc., alleging failure to design, construct and operate Epcot’s Fast Track ride in a safe manner.
According to the complaint, on Feb. 16, 2015, the visitor was at Epcot’s MGM Studios when the ride malfunctioned, causing him to be thrown about the Fast Track car. The suit says the man sustained bodily injuries, resulting in pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, mental anguish, loss of the capacity for the enjoyment of life, medical treatment and loss of earnings.
The man alleges Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. failed to provide sufficient restraints to ensure that persons would remain firmly seated on the ride and failed to ensure that guests were properly seated and restrained prior to the ride operation.
Amusement parks like Epcot, Universal Studios, Walt Disney World, Busch Gardens, Blizzard Beach, Typhoon Lagoon, etc. are held to a higher standard of safety of care knows as common carrier, a term that also applies to entities that operate airplanes, buses and trains. Theme parks are required to follow more thorough procedures to ensure rider safety.
When an injury occurs at an amusement park, negligence on the part of the staff is usually a key issue. Some of these issues may include:
A 44-year-old man was injured Saturday on a raft ride at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded to the water park at about 1 p.m. The man was riding Miss Adventure Falls when his arm became stuck between the ride’s conveyor belt.
Disney cast members attempted to free the man’s arm before deputies arrived. The Reedy Creek Fire Rescue responded to the water park and were able to free the man’s arm.
The man was flown to Osceola Regional Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries.
The attraction is currently closed while Disney reviews the incident.
Miss Adventure Falls debuted at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon in 2017.
In 2017, the latest year for statistics on Disney parks, 2.163 million people visited Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon. That breaks down to 5,926 visitors a day.
The rides and activities at most water parks have the potential to cause very serious injury if things go wrong. Because of this, operators must exercise reasonable care to ensure the safety of their rides and their riders.
While it is very important to document an injury and report it to park officials, obtaining legal representation swiftly following the accident is essential in prevailing in a lawsuit against a water park. You may be entitled to recover for your medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, wrongful death, or other losses.
A Pasco County mom had a big fright last weekend when her son almost flew off a ride at The Arnold Midway set up in the Wiregrass mall parking lot.
Her son was on the Orbiter when she noticed something was not right. She noticed her child slipping and about to fly out of the ride. She ran over to the operator who stopped the ride before the child was harmed.
The ride remained open after he got off. A sticker on the side shows it passed it’s October 24 inspection by the Department of Agriculture aside from placing cart #10 out of service because of a cracked lap bar.
There have been reports in the past on people flying off of this specific ride.
If you suspect an issue with a fair ride, you can report it to the Department of Agriculture at 1-800-HELP-FLA or FloridaConsumerHelp.com.
Carnival and amusement park rides can and do happen. The Federal Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) shows the following stats:
Amusement parks and carnivals can be so much fun for young children. Families flock to these amusement parks for adventure, excitement and fun. However, not all rides are truly safe and not all ride operators are trained properly or paying careful attention. Amusement park ride safety is especially important for children, who represent half of those injured or killed in amusement park ride accidents.
A season pass holder is suing a Walt Disney water taxi operator, alleging negligence led to injuries.
The woman filed a complaint Sept. 6 in Orange County Circuit Court against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. Inc., alleging a water taxi operator failed to exercise the highest degree of care in order to prevent injuries to its passengers.
According to the complaint, on May 21, 2017, the woman was a guest at Walt Disney World Theme Park. A guest operating an electric scooter negligently attempted to park in the back of a water taxi as instructed by employees and struck the woman in the leg.
She said she sustained bodily injury, resulting in pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, mental anguish, the expenses of hospitalization, medical and nursing care and treatment, plus the loss of earnings. Her suit alleges Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S.’s employees negligently maintained or controlled the boarding procedure of the electric scooter.
Accidents resulting in injury can be frightening and overwhelming experiences. If you or a family member has suffered an injury or been harmed due to someone else’s negligence at a theme park like Walt Disney World, consulting with a Florida Theme Park Injury Attorney at Whittel & Melton should be one of your top priorities.
The goal of your personal injury claim is to recover a large enough financial award to cover all of your losses and offset the economic impact of the accident. We will fight to recover full compensation for your present and future medical expenses, lost income, and even damages for your pain and suffering.
An investigation from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services found that the derailment of a Daytona Beach roller coaster in June that injured six people was caused by excessive speed and operator error.
The investigation said operator error was the reason the Sand Blaster Roller Coaster derailed June 14, causing a cart full of people to dangle above the ground. Of the 10 people on the ride, six had to be hospitalized.
During a post-accident inspection, engineers found evidence of previous derailments on the nearly 40-year-old coaster, including one that appeared to have taken place after it was refurbished in 2013, officials said in a preliminary report.
Had that derailment been addressed before the June accident, investigators said, the crash likely wouldn’t have happened. No other derailments had been reported to state officials before the June incident.
The coaster, which is on Ocean Avenue near the Daytona Beach Pier, has been out of operation since the accident and will remain out of operation indefinitely, officials said.
Roller coaster accidents can result in minor to severe injuries, and in some cases, death. Victims of roller coaster injuries in Daytona Beach and elsewhere throughout the state of Florida can rely on the experienced Roller Coaster Accident Attorneys at Whittel & Melton to provide legal representation in seeking compensation for their losses. We know how devastating these accidents can be, which is why we will fight for maximum compensation for roller coaster injuries.
Ride operators are hired to run roller coasters safely. These individuals are responsible for ensuring that each passenger is seated and secured properly in the ride, and that the ride starts and stops as it is intended. Even the slightest error on the operator’s part can lead to a serious roller coaster accident.
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