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Thunder Mtn Accident Report
- Thread starter Gucci65
- Start date
Here's the text from Reuters...
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Disneyland fatal accident linked to maintenance
Wednesday November 26, 1:10 pm ET
LOS ANGELES, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Faulty maintenance on a Disneyland roller coaster led to the September accident which killed a man on the ride, Walt Disney Co. said on Wednesday.
The admission by the Burbank, California-based media giant that owns the Walt Disney World theme park in Florida and Disneyland in Southern California, has raised further questions about the company's liability in the mishap.
"Our own analysis found that the accident was caused by incorrectly performed maintenance tasks required by Disneyland policy and procedures that resulted in a mechanical failure," spokeswoman Leslie Goodman said in a statement.
"At no time have we ever done anything which we believe would compromise the level of safety required for the safe operation of our attraction," the statement said.
The Big Thunder Railroad roller coaster, which barrels along a track like a runaway mine train, partially derailed on Sept. 5, killing one rider, 22-year-old Marcelo Torres.
Wylie Aitken, the lawyer for the Torres family, said the train had derailed because a piece intended to keep it on the track, called an upstop wheel, fell off the locomotive at the front of the roller coaster.
As a result, the locomotive had jumped the track, causing the accident, Aitken said.
"We found out what happened. now the question is going to by why it happened," Aitken told Reuters, referring to his own investigation and adding that the accident could be a sign of wider, systematic problems at the park.
Goodman denied the notion of further problems with maintenance, but did not give details about the procedures that were incorrectly performed.
"We believe that our maintenance system incorporates the best modern management practices and safety procedures. We constantly evaluate and explore new ways to improve our operations," she said.
"Our long-standing commitment to safety remains the same. Anyone who suggests otherwise is simply wrong."
State safety investigators at the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health separately are in the final stage of a probe into the accident and due to release their report on Wednesday.
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Disneyland fatal accident linked to maintenance
Wednesday November 26, 1:10 pm ET
LOS ANGELES, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Faulty maintenance on a Disneyland roller coaster led to the September accident which killed a man on the ride, Walt Disney Co. said on Wednesday.
The admission by the Burbank, California-based media giant that owns the Walt Disney World theme park in Florida and Disneyland in Southern California, has raised further questions about the company's liability in the mishap.
"Our own analysis found that the accident was caused by incorrectly performed maintenance tasks required by Disneyland policy and procedures that resulted in a mechanical failure," spokeswoman Leslie Goodman said in a statement.
"At no time have we ever done anything which we believe would compromise the level of safety required for the safe operation of our attraction," the statement said.
The Big Thunder Railroad roller coaster, which barrels along a track like a runaway mine train, partially derailed on Sept. 5, killing one rider, 22-year-old Marcelo Torres.
Wylie Aitken, the lawyer for the Torres family, said the train had derailed because a piece intended to keep it on the track, called an upstop wheel, fell off the locomotive at the front of the roller coaster.
As a result, the locomotive had jumped the track, causing the accident, Aitken said.
"We found out what happened. now the question is going to by why it happened," Aitken told Reuters, referring to his own investigation and adding that the accident could be a sign of wider, systematic problems at the park.
Goodman denied the notion of further problems with maintenance, but did not give details about the procedures that were incorrectly performed.
"We believe that our maintenance system incorporates the best modern management practices and safety procedures. We constantly evaluate and explore new ways to improve our operations," she said.
"Our long-standing commitment to safety remains the same. Anyone who suggests otherwise is simply wrong."
State safety investigators at the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health separately are in the final stage of a probe into the accident and due to release their report on Wednesday.
Shaman
Well-Known Member
"Faulty Maintenance"--thats putting it nicely....lets hope maintenance is a little better than faulty at this point in time...it would be horrible for another accident like that to happen...perhaps instead of cutting maintenance costs they should cutback on their (Disney powers that be) end of the year bonuses...
:animwink: :zipit: :hammer:
Perhaps former and current CMs can tell us if anything has changed as a result of the accident months ago at DLR...
:lookaroun
:animwink: :zipit: :hammer:
Perhaps former and current CMs can tell us if anything has changed as a result of the accident months ago at DLR...
:lookaroun
LadyDarling
New Member
Accidents are bound to happen. Do you ever kind of 1/2 do a job at your work? It happens to the best of us. It's sad that this time, it resulted in a death. All rides are "ride at your own risk". I'm glad they have thier answers! They will probably crack down a bit on matience. Once any law suits are settled, I for one look forward to riding BT again! 
Daannzzz
Well-Known Member
Here is a link to the actual California State DOSH report.
http://www.mpimages.net/dlr/compres...derAccident/thundermountainaccidentreport.pdf
http://www.mpimages.net/dlr/compres...derAccident/thundermountainaccidentreport.pdf
Raidermatt
Active Member
The problem with this is that when public safety depends on the outcome, there should be validation procedures in place that ensure one person having a bad day doesn't result in a death. Also, the report talks about the maintenance crew and CMs not even knowing what some of the procedures are...
Not good news for DL.
LadyDarling
New Member
Just seeing both sides of the coin here. It's unforunate it took an accident for this lesson to be learned. I have every confidence that they will tighten up thier training program and get it goin! One problem is staffing as well. At WDW, you generally have people who WANT to work at WDW. At Disneyland, you tend to end up with a bunch of college kids just trying to squeak by and make a buck. ((See the Rude CM posts for some comparisons))
I know I've read the company manual at my job and I know the procedures a little, but if quizzed, I'd probably fail. No doubt this will put fail safes in place so one person having a bad day won't result like this.
I know I've read the company manual at my job and I know the procedures a little, but if quizzed, I'd probably fail. No doubt this will put fail safes in place so one person having a bad day won't result like this.
MrNonacho
Premium Member
I don't know if it will have one at all. The report said the accident was caused by problems with the training of the maintenance workers and other employees. The ride itself was found to be safe as long as procedures are followed correctly.
Anyone know if WDW's opened today as rumored?
Lee
Adventurer
Actually the report had some positive aspects:
They found that only one of the six trains on BTMRR had a wheel assembly that had not been properly tightened. All the others were in perfect order.
The track and ride system was found to be in order.
Disneyland's maintenence proceedures were adequate and even exceeded what is required.
The ride, when properly maintained, is perfectly safe.
Now, if they solve their training issues for ride ops and machinists, they should be ok.
Oh, and there is the matter of a few large checks to write...
They found that only one of the six trains on BTMRR had a wheel assembly that had not been properly tightened. All the others were in perfect order.
The track and ride system was found to be in order.
Disneyland's maintenence proceedures were adequate and even exceeded what is required.
The ride, when properly maintained, is perfectly safe.
Now, if they solve their training issues for ride ops and machinists, they should be ok.
Oh, and there is the matter of a few large checks to write...
Originally posted by LadyDarling
Accidents are bound to happen. Do you ever kind of 1/2 do a job at your work? It happens to the best of us. It's sad that this time, it resulted in a death. All rides are "ride at your own risk". I'm glad they have thier answers! They will probably crack down a bit on matience. Once any law suits are settled, I for one look forward to riding BT again!
I look forward to riding it again as well, and I agree they will (hopefully) crack down on maintenance.
However I must respectfully take some issues with some things you've said here in your post. First of all, while it is true that "all rides are 'ride at your own risk'" as you've stated, Disney prides itself on giving guests a feeling of safety when visiting one of their parks. Secondly, it is not simply "sad" that someone died as a result...it is UNACCEPTABLE!
I am so happy the Pressler/Harriss regime is finally gone. The blood of more than one guest is on Cynthia Harriss' hands in my opinion.
Agreed! Although I feel about 1000 times safer at WDW than I do at DL. Thank goodness WDW never had Cynthia Harriss running things. People keep wanting to blame the problems on "normal wear and tear" and that "accidents just happen", but isn't it a little coincidental that WDW has never been plagued with the problems that DL has had?
LadyDarling
New Member
Please understand that I am not making light of the situation. For the family when someone needlessly died, I agree that it should never have happened and I'm very sorry it did happen at all. As for me, I understand now more than ever, that everything is "ride at your own risk" and that my life "could" very well be in danger. It is in danger every time I step in any moving vehicle and sometimes we forget that (I know I do). And I have every confidence in Disney that the will correct the problem. A local news report stated that it was actually a company hired by Disney to maintain it's cars that did a slip shot job on that one wheel. The other cars were perfectly safe. I'm sure training and things will happen to prevent it from repeating itself. It's horrible that it takes death to make us tighten our security and safety measures, as we've all seen from other "accidents" where we were "supposed to be" safe in and outside of the theme park world. I have every faith that it will not happen again. To anyone that took offense to my use of the word "sad" or believed me to be downplaying this tragedy, you are sorely mistaken and I apologize if it came off that way. No one should ever die in a place where you are supposed to have fun. But, an unforunate reality of life is that accidents do happen, and when you are speeding in any moving vehicle, they can be deadly.
barnum42
New Member
Much as I am sceptical of the motives of corporate bosses and their desire of self-financial gain over all else, the author of the report has made no mention of cutbacks being the cause of this accident.
He does mention “outside machinists” not following the correct procedures. I’m taking a guess that this means these particular maintenance people are contractors rather than Disney employees. So, maybe there will be cries of “cheap labour”.
There appears to be confusion as to the procedure for tagging the ride vehicles as having been subject to maintenance, requiring maintenance and awaiting maintenance (the yellow / green tag thing). Plus a machinist signing maintenance off that was carried out by someone else.
I notice that there are only two additional procedures recommended on top of current park policies - To put in place a procedure for ride staff to follow when they notice an unusual sound and that a car must do a test cycle of the track prior to it’s carrying passengers.
So, they know what caused the accident, and how it happened and hopefully how to prevent its reoccurrence. May it be the last time something of this nature happens.
HennieBogan1966
Account Suspended
Well, after having read all of the posts, I wanted to offer my views on this subject, if I may. I'm not sure of the safety record of DL and WDW, but I would guess it to be very good, considering the millions and millions of guests that both parks have entertained over a combined 60yrs plus. To say that this was "an isolated incident" I know may be understating the gravity and tragedy of this accident, and I don't mean to do that.
My heartfelt condolances go out to the family of the soul lost.
But in terms of ride safety, and safety records, this would appear to be a blip on the radar screen. (again, all respect to the life lost) just a figure of speech to make my point.
I would question why Disney is farming work out, when it appears to me that their own people, who hear every sound these rides make, clean them, operate them every day of the year, would be more qualified in that sense to inspect these rides.
Is it truly a training issue, a money issue, both? I know that I have some frustration with the company as it relates to offering only part time positions throughout the company. (for example) The Disney Store. My Wife and I were both part-time castmembers. We both have a great deal of experience, enough to be in mgmt levels with the store, yet, it seems the company would rather hire younger, more inexperienced teen-agers/young adults to move into mgmt positions. Again, money issue?
It seems to be a common thread throughout the company. If possible, could someone currently employed at the parks out there offer some light on this? I hope that this sort of thing never happens again. And accidents will happen no matter how good the "procedures" are. But certainly, wouldn't it be better to keep this work in house with "full time" castmembers?
My heartfelt condolances go out to the family of the soul lost.
But in terms of ride safety, and safety records, this would appear to be a blip on the radar screen. (again, all respect to the life lost) just a figure of speech to make my point.
I would question why Disney is farming work out, when it appears to me that their own people, who hear every sound these rides make, clean them, operate them every day of the year, would be more qualified in that sense to inspect these rides.
Is it truly a training issue, a money issue, both? I know that I have some frustration with the company as it relates to offering only part time positions throughout the company. (for example) The Disney Store. My Wife and I were both part-time castmembers. We both have a great deal of experience, enough to be in mgmt levels with the store, yet, it seems the company would rather hire younger, more inexperienced teen-agers/young adults to move into mgmt positions. Again, money issue?
It seems to be a common thread throughout the company. If possible, could someone currently employed at the parks out there offer some light on this? I hope that this sort of thing never happens again. And accidents will happen no matter how good the "procedures" are. But certainly, wouldn't it be better to keep this work in house with "full time" castmembers?
The safety records of DL and WDW are not even in the same ballpark with one another. WDW's is fairly clean. DL's, by contrast, is atrocious. To say this was "an isolated incident" does not merely "understate the gravity" of the accident. It is also grossly incorrect. In the past several years, DL has had major accidents (some fatal and others resulting in very serious injuries) on Big Thunder, Space Mountain, Roger Rabbit, Tom Sawyer Island and the Sailing Ship Columbia.
Money! It is substantially cheaper in the long run to contract this work out. The employees aren't employed by Disney and, therefore, Disney doesn't have to pay health benefits, etc.
According to an article I read in Fortune Magazine this is becoming more of a trend in corporations. Companies are finding it more beneficial to hire younger, less experienced workers. Younger employees tend to be more "hungry" and eager to impress so they can get promoted. By contrast, older employees tend to be more likely to feel the company owes them for their loyalty and also that they've already proven themselves. So there's less incentive to work harder. Consequently, companies get more "bang for their buck" by hiring and promoting younger workers.
I was a cast member (and later a corporate trainer) at The Disney Store right around the time that Cynthia Harriss first started there. Within her first year with the company, I started to see the decline and left shortly thereafter.
I've never been a CM at any of the parks, but keep in fairly close touch with some friends who are (including one in the DL maintenance division who told me several years ago that Cynthia's maintenance cutbacks would eventually kill someone...very prophetic).