The doctor is out

[hiho]

I heard from a TV Program yesterday, that in amusement parks they have no staff to check the rides. Or at least make a good inspection of every part of the ride. They say that they just check the traction and the wheels on the track. And on the thrill rides that they dont even do their inpections, except once a year. That means that the ride that you ride on, could be questionable for saftey.

[IEATPASTE001]

Were you watching Fox2 news in the metro detroit area? cause they like to make up stories. The statement said above is totally false and untrue. Sounds like another round of Ed Markey.

[hiho]

No. No.

It wasnt that. I got it off a Discovery Channel Show about the Dangers of rollercoasters. I did not get it from Fox.

But Fox is the best channel for war coverage!

[IEATPASTE001]

well discovery channel missed the boat on this one. I know for a fact that yes amusement parks have workers that inspect the rides. with americans being sue happy a park would be stupid not to inspect the rides. Just proves everything you see on cable isn't true.

[hiho]

Of course this is not every park. Specialists keep on top of rides in some of the parks. But they say that some do yearly inspections of the rides

[spunknit]

It was a show on MSNBC (they also like to glorify stories). The comment in question was mainly regarding carnival rides. The issue was concerning the stress carnival type rides endure, with the constant set up & tear down. They are inspected once a year & they are concerned it is not enough.

In regards to amusement parks, they skimmed over a brief blurb about inspections. Some states do not regulate the ride inspections. It is left up to the park. However according to this story, most states do regulate them. They only focused on the ones that don't.

They discussed the few accidents that have occured at amusement parks in the last few years. It was all so brief, though, as the show was mainly about the popularity of the parks, & the newer, taller, faster rides, etc.

[Spam_POLICE]

I know out here in CA, OSHA does inspect rides. They shutdown Goldrusher at SFMM for a couple of weeks because they felt the trains needed some repairs. The repairs were made and it is now open again. But the point here is that the state of CA, does go out and inspect rides and will take action if it is needed. As for GR it is not nearly the biggest or badest coaster around, in fact is barely makes it out of the kiddie coaster catagory in my book. I only ride it about every 3-4 times I go.

[hiho]

Yes It was MSNBC spuntknit thank you. But it did not just talk about traveling carnival rides but the main amusement parks themselves.

And Man you must have paid attention very well because you just summarized it from what I remeber yesterday.

And that is a point Spammy. And that could be it since the mild whether to.

[Spam_POLICE]

Did you just call me Spammy? I did not think so. Well I know that when the fair rolls into my town I don't go on the rides. The fact that they are up and down so often kinda makes me nevrous.

[hiho]

Sorry Officer. But Exactly about the fair. They say that is where the most accidents occur because of such speedy setup.

[Harpo]

Let me preface this statement by saying that I think rides at permanent parks, in general, are safer than at mobile fairs.

Having said that, the mobile fair operators would claim their rides are safer than at the permanent parks BECAUSE of taking them down and putting them up all the time. They claim that such activity allows them to have a closer and more frequent inspection of the parts than is done by permanent parks.

This argument would have some merit, until one actually gets an image in their head of the grizzled ride attendant with three teeth saying, "Ya wanna ride the Zipper?" Then, picture this same person assembling the ride with a Coors in his hand. "Dang, I always seem to have a couple of parts left over. Oh well, no one'll miss 'em!"

Of course, that's a totally unfair generalization, but SOME of the people who assemble and disassemble the fair rides are pretty scary! (And, of course, unfair generalizations tend to be more fun.)

[hiho]

Yes yes I know but you dont know when a stationary park has last inspected their rides. You have no knowledge or say when they inspect the rides. As it may seem safe there are many accidents a year. As in 1999 alone a little of 10,000 park guests were sent to the ER because of rides that hurt them or even some killed!

So you see you can never know on what is going to happen.

[Harpo]

Actually, the number you mention for 1999 is not an accurate depiction. The statistics that Ed Markey and his band of nitwits likes to quote are actually the number of people who went to an ER following a visit to an amusement park. I know from having worked at an amusement park that VERY few of the incidents are due to rides. One of the most common is heat stroke -- people fail to drink enough water while at the park. Unless one argues that the park should be forcing water down the throats of the patrons, it really isn't fair to blame the parks for the heat stroke victims.

Of course, there's also quite a bit of food at the parks. Sometimes, people eat too fast, or swallow wrong, and have choking issues.

Other incidents include people who violate the rules. That category includes people who fall off of the queue railings upon which they've been told not to sit or stand. There are also people who are running through the park and run into someone, or into a trash can, or trip over the shoe laces they failed to tie.

The most amusing one I ever had to deal with: a person came up to my game needing medical assistance. She couldn't walk any farther due to blisters on her feet. I attempted to find a way to get a wheelchair for her, but First Aid sent the ambulance for her. So, she was hauled off in an ambulance due to foot blisters.

Of course, there are also people who wind up at the hospitals due to motion sickness -- they just couldn't handle the movement of the rides, and probably shouldn't have been riding them.

I don't have my calculations with me, but, when I first saw the statistics, I plugged through some numbers. I found the number of people that go to the ER at Beaumont Hospitals in Royal Oak and Troy, Michigan. With the population in the tri-county area of Detroit, you're significantly more likely to go to one of the two Beaumont Hospitals on any given day, than to wind up at a hospital after visiting an amusement park. And, of course, there are many other hospitals in Metro Detroit, hence the statistics are even more in favor of the parks being safer than merely living in the Metro Detroit region (where there aren't any amusement parks).

[hiho]

No this is on rides. but if you look at this with so many parks per state in the US and parks around the world that is a lot of parks so 10,000 is the acurate number.

[Harpo]

Do you recall your source? A few years ago, I saw the same number, but it was total for amusement parks, not just for the rides. I do not recall the web site where I obtained the data, but it was a newspaper web site, quoting some information from Ed Markey and company.

[hiho]

You sure; throughout the whole world that means that each park may have 0-3 ride accidents a year of course there could be more in some parks.

[iAMpaste001]

I think the majority of the controversy in terms of park injuries/safety comes down to two things: statistics and the media. Statistics can be manipulated to support whatever side you're on. For example, the number 10,000 injuries and deaths in parks each year. If you take it at face value like that (just as the media and groups who are against coasters like Ed Markey and his people), it does sound pretty serious and scary. But if you look at the whole picture, like how many parks were counted in this injury count (hundreds?) and then factor in how many of those people were actually hurt by the rides themselves, versus hurt by ignoring safety precautions or hurt while in the park but not on any rides (like tripping over their untied shoelaces and falling while walking to the next ride), it puts the number in perspective. The other thing is when a serious injury or death does occur, the media is all over that, giving it more coverage than is really necessary which makes it stand out in people's minds for a long time. The fact is, people are hurt and sometimes even killed in amusement parks. But isn't the same true for riding in a car or walking down the street or even sleeping in your bed? The point is, just about everything has some risk, including going to amusement parks. But if you follow the rules and bring your common sense with you, the chances of anything happening are very small.

[IronWolf98]

Originally posted by hiho
You sure; throughout the whole world that means that each park may have 0-3 ride accidents a year of course there could be more in some parks.

Well, I'm sure. I worked at a theme park for four years, and while we had accidents (all of them high profile), they were freak accidents that could have happened anywhere.

1) American Eagle - A hitchbar separates cars 1&2 from cars 3,4,5 causing a collision in the brakes. A wrong size something or other was blamed for the separation. The daily inspection missed it, because it was tight at 5am when it was inspected (it loosened during the operation of the ride). The only ride malfunction that year. (not including general ride downtimes that occur every day).

2) Demon train stranded in loop - the chasis in the rear car separated for almost the same reason...a wrong size screw or nut or something. Couldn't have been noticed during the general safety inspection. And...it was noticed during the day, an employee hopped on the ride to confirm that there was a problem. Unfortunately for him, that's when it finally gave way.

3) Cajun Cliffhanger - A girl's toe was lodged between the floor and the wall. Rider misconduct and employee negligence (he couldn't speak English, and in my opinion was unable to understand the safety requirements of that particular ride).

* While these are major and seem to indicate a problem, these are very specific and isolated accidents that would have occurred anyway. Illinois has a department that specifically certifies rides, and the Demon accident occurred the very first day of operation, after the inspection. The irdes are checked daily to prevent such accidents, but even then they can't be prevented. At SF Great America, Maintenance does track/train checks early in the morning. Once the ride leads arrive, they perform block checks. Flat rides have other types of inspections as well. These are done daily. If the appropriate paperwork is signed, then the ride ops can begin their safety checks, including riding to insure normal riding quality. There are several signatures on a daily basis required. So that program is completely wrong. The checks are very thorough. If they weren't, there would be a lot more accidents reported...Trust me on that!!

[hiho]

Man, those are not very good things to think about, and so was that just the bad accidents, or were those the only ones to happen in four years?

[IronWolf98]

Originally posted by hiho
Man, those are not very good things to think about, and so was that just the bad accidents, or were those the only ones to happen in four years?

Those were it in those four years. As I said in my first post, only the Cajun Cliffhanger was preventable in any respect. The others happened in spite of the state inspections, so inspections, no matter how detailed, won't necessarily prevent any accidents.

[hiho]

So there is a risk riding any ride. So some of the crases are not preventible. That doesnt sound safe.

[Squid2]

Hiho, here in Atlanta, over any given 4 day weekend, there are usually 10 deaths due to traffic accidents. At SFOG, also here in Atlanta, there have only been two deaths at the park. PERIOD. This is for a park that has been operating since 1967.

For the record, of the two deaths... one was an employee being somewhere he wasn't allowed to go. The gentlemen in question somehow got into the footprint of Batman: The Ride while it was operating, and was struck by a rider during the ride's normal operation. The rider had a broken leg; the employee, who was hit in the head, died instantly. Do note that the employee wasn't even assigned to that section of the park, and wasn't a coaster operator. He BROKE INTO the ride's footprint, and did not notify operators of his presence.

The second death was a young boy who was riding Z-Force, (now Flashback at SFMM,) who got on the ride healthy. When the train returned to the station, he was dead. The ride was shut down for months for tests. Inspectors found nothing wrong with the ride. An autopsy discovered that the boy was epileptic; even his doctor and parents didn't know. He had a seizure while riding and died from it.

Both deaths were not the fault of the ride; therefore the rides cannot be held to blame. I know for a fact that SFOG inspects it's rides twice a day; just before opening and just after closing. I've talked with the ride engineers, who are assigned to a coaster, and asked them what they do. It typically takes them 2 1/2 hours per inspection, and they do two inspections a day, once before opening, once before closing.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently did an interview with one of the engineers for The Great American Scream Machine rollercoaster, and they asked similar questions. Same answers were given, pretty much. For that coaster, they literally walk the entire track twice daily to make sure nothing is wrong, and if something is spotted, it is repaired then and there.

Heck, more people have died from gunshots or cancer in the time it took me to type this than died at/from amusement parks... think about it.

Squid2

p.s. I'm not trying to flame you, nor am I angry. But Ed Markey has been spreading a lot of lies and misinformation, and I'm trying to counter his misinformation.

[Harpo]

You're right that the parks are generally safer than most activities. Where I think Ed Markey is all wet is that he focuses on the rides. I think the focus needs to be on the operation.

The incident at SFOG with the worker is a good example. From the reports I read, the worker was an experienced maintenance worker. As a result, he SHOULD have known better. But, he lost his life and put the safety of the riders in jeopardy due to a stupid action.

Most of the incidents are due to human error. When you combine large machinery with people, that's a definite risk (heck, just look at all the traffic accidents for proof). Properly trained and alert staff can minimize that risk. If Ed Markey is truly interested in safety at amusement parks, training of the staff is where his focus should be.

Unexpected breakdowns can still occur, but a good staff can minimize the impact.

[IronWolf98]

Originally posted by hiho
So there is a risk riding any ride. So some of the crases are not preventible. That doesnt sound safe.

It's not any safer to get in your car, walk down the street, ride an airplane, elevator, train, or boat. So I don't really see the difference. Those things are inspected (for the most part) just as much as an amusement ride (or more).

[Harpo]

Actually, I think amusement parks are safer than air travel. Northworst Airlines has managed to injure me on 3 separate flights -- once with slamming into my shoulder with a beverage cart, leaving a nice bruise, once with dropping a suitcase on my head while trying to help a person put it in the overhead compartment, and once by spilling hot coffee on me when the brainiac flight attendent was carrying an open cup down the aisle while the seatbelt lights were on due to expected turbulence. (What's worse, I don't even drink coffee -- can't stand the stuff!)

The flight attendant with the coffee apologized, but, for the other incidents, they didn't even say "excuse me."

Meanwhile, with all the coasters I've experienced, I've bumped my elbow a few times on some of the rougher coasters, and a harness slammed down on my arm for Ultra Twister at Astroworld, but that's about it.

[hiho]

Though the deaths are out of stupidity it still doesnt cover for what happened to the people, as I said at the start that in 1999 that 10,000 guests from amusement parks around the world get hauled off the the ER. That still counts as an accident and not just of someones stupidity.