Another death on M:S

[MKCP 1985]

The weird thing is that Mission: Space only subjects you to the equivalent of 2 Gs, or twice your own weight. There are several thrill rides in Orlando that have a greater effect on the typical person than M:S.

On multiple rides over four visits since it opened, I've never had the first problem with Mission:Space. If Disney keeps the ride open, people will continue to stand in line to ride it and the ones who want to ride will not give too much thought to the number of people who've had problems. I wouldn't hesitate to ride it today.

Still, the ultimate question is whether this attraction is acceptable for a Disney park given the number of problems and the serious nature of those problems that have occurred to a very small number of people. Some people would say that one death is too many and is unacceptable. Personally, I don't want to read about another single person dying after coming off Mission:Space. How do you prevent future deaths while keeping the ride open? Can it be done?

 

[wannab@dis]

Still, the ultimate question is whether this attraction is acceptable for a Disney park given the number of problems and the serious nature of those problems that have occurred to a very small number of people. Some people would say that one death is too many and is unacceptable. Personally, I don't want to read about another single person dying after coming off Mission:Space. How do you prevent future deaths while keeping the ride open? Can it be done?

That's the exact issue that should be up for discussion... not the blame game. If the ride is found to be at fault in this instance, then something will HAVE to change, but the decision is not Disney's in that case. However, if this is a repeat of the first death and the ride is not the cause, then Disney has to make some REALLY tough decisions.

Think about this... people here (ultimate Disney fans) are saying the ride should go. They are already blaming the ride without any information. Disney has a MAJOR public relations issue and the media will be ready to pounce on it and work it for every bit they can.

What can Disney do?

First... Leave the ride operational and keep the status quo.... If they do that, the media will probably have the whole "theme park safety" stories and use this latest death as the attention getting headline. They (and many people) will question whether Disney actually cares about guest safety since they don't close the ride.

Two... Close the ride or make modifications to it... If they choose this approach, then whether or not the attraction was truly at fault, people will assume Disney is accepting culpability. They will wonder if Disney secretly knew about problems and the conspiracy theorists will go into overdrive. If one single change is made to the ride, then Disney PR machine will have to go into full force mode to attempt to rationalize the decision.

No matter where the blame falls... Disney is stuck with only a negative outcome.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

2 G's is one thing...but this is a sustained 2 G's...unlike a rollercoaster where you experience the G-forces for a second or two.

wannabe, When did I ever say that the ride should shut down? I don't know what they should do, but they need to do something. To sit with their hands crossed and say, "Well, again, this person had a pre-existing condition," won't hold up with the public if this keeps happening. That is all I am saying.

 

[SpongeScott]

2 G's is one thing...but this is a sustained 2 G's...unlike a rollercoaster where you experience the G-forces for a second or two.

wannabe, When did I ever say that the ride should shut down? I don't know what they should do, but they need to do something. To sit with their hands crossed and say, "Well, again, this person had a pre-existing condition," won't hold up with the public if this keeps happening. That is all I am saying.

Brian, I don't think he was inferring you were saying the ride should close (at least that's the way i read it). And again, I think they are going to need to do something and Todd is right--Disney is in a no-win situation on this. It will be interesting to see how they put a PR spin on this.

What is the "right" thing to do?
Nothing?
Modify the ride?
Close the attraction and put in something new? I know we're talking about the loss of human life, but permanently closing a $100 million ride after 3+ years of operation?

 

[Shaman]

No matter where the blame falls... Disney is stuck with only a negative outcome.

Exactly. Bad press is bad for business (whether true or not), eventually they'll have to address the issues, it really doesn't matter whether M:S is fully, partially or even responsible for these deaths and injuries. If the perception is negative...it calls for costly damage control.

It will take a lot more than words for Disney to fix things...if these "accidents" keep happening.

 

[pager]

poor lady

 

[SarahBella82]

I don't think "blame" needs to be assigned in this case. A person knows (very well, due to extraordinarily visible and persistent signage) what effects the body will undergo, what conditions are dangerous to have when riding certain rides, etc. I think it's clear to most people that at any given time, anything can happen. An undetected ailment is not a person's fault. Nor is the exacerbation of an ailment the fault of a theme park ride. It's simply a terrible coincidence.

We should be respectful of the deceased and vigilant about our own health (related to and unrelated to our experience of theme park rides).

 

[prberk]

Disney reopened Mission:Space this morning, after state and Disney officials declared it operating properly:

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?p=1587901#post1587901

 

[Shaman]

I don't think "blame" needs to be assigned in this case. A person knows (very well, due to extraordinarily visible and persistent signage) what effects the body will undergo, what conditions are dangerous to have when riding certain rides, etc. I think it's clear to most people that at any given time, anything can happen. An undetected ailment is not a person's fault. Nor is the exacerbation of an ailment the fault of a theme park ride. It's simply a terrible coincidence.

We should be respectful of the deceased and vigilant about our own health (related to and unrelated to our experience of theme park rides).

Excellent post! One lesson we should take from these stories is that we should be mindful of our health.

:wave:

 

[wannab@dis]

2 G's is one thing...but this is a sustained 2 G's...unlike a rollercoaster where you experience the G-forces for a second or two.

wannabe, When did I ever say that the ride should shut down? I don't know what they should do, but they need to do something. To sit with their hands crossed and say, "Well, again, this person had a pre-existing condition," won't hold up with the public if this keeps happening. That is all I am saying.

No, no... I know you didn't call for a closure of the ride. Scott's right.. I'm just pointing out that this is a no-win situation. Open, Close, Change... all have negative outcomes.

 

[MickeyTigg]

I love the attraction and the Disney company...but...there comes a time when you have to take a step back and realize that you DO have some responsibility. You posted those stats about deaths from Mission:Space, and how you are more likely to die by getting struck by lightning rather than Mission:Space...but look at it from a broader perspective. How many people have suffered from chest pains or illness from the attraction? Does this same stat apply to the WDW Transportation system? Do as many people get chest pains and suffer from ill feelings after they get off of the Transportation system? Sure, the extremes apply, but if people are getting chest pains, just because they didn't die doesn't mean that it didn't affect their heart!

C'mon people, I know that you guys love Disney and everything, but if this were to happen at a 6 Flags park, you know you'd be singing a different tune.

Like I said, I'm Pro-Disney and even Pro-Mission:Space...but there is a point when you need to reconsider things.

While I understand your point Brian....Disney is a much bigger target than Six Flags and frankly other than a local story probably wouldn't get the exposure that an incident at any of the Disney parks would get.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

No, no... I know you didn't call for a closure of the ride. Scott's right.. I'm just pointing out that this is a no-win situation. Open, Close, Change... all have negative outcomes.

Oh yes, I'm sorry for the confusion...I completely agree that this is definitely bad for Disney (even if it had nothing to do with the operation of M:S). I'm just saying that maybe more precautions need to be put into affect so that this doesn't happen again.

As for Disney being a bigger target than 6 Flags...I agree, but does that make it better or worse? A person died here... Sure, Disney gets more media coverage (and, more bad-press) but that doesn't change the fact that a person died on an amusement attraction...whether it be Disney or a traveling carnival.

 

[wannab@dis]

Oh yes, I'm sorry for the confusion...I completely agree that this is definitely bad for Disney (even if it had nothing to do with the operation of M:S). I'm just saying that maybe more precautions need to be put into affect so that this doesn't happen again.

As for Disney being a bigger target than 6 Flags...I agree, but does that make it better or worse? A person died here... Sure, Disney gets more media coverage (and, more bad-press) but that doesn't change the fact that a person died on an amusement attraction...whether it be Disney or a traveling carnival.

I'm not sure what other precautions they could add... it already has more warnings than any attraction I have EVER been on.

If there's a problem with the ride, then it SHOULD be fixed. I just don't think that is the case. It's intense, but I don't think it alone is the factor in people dying.

 

[MickeyTigg]

I mean, they don't have to close the ride, can't they just make it less intense? Personally, I can tell you I LOVE thrill rides and will ride everything at the Disney Parks, both Universal Parks, Sea World, and Busch Gardens, but I WON'T ride M:S.

From the people that I know connected with the imagineering of the ride...no, they cannot make it less intense...it would totally ruin the ride and then they might as well shut it down.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

From the people that I know connected with the imagineering of the ride...no, they cannot make it less intense...it would totally ruin the ride and then they might as well shut it down.

This is what I fear.

I love the ride...and would hate to see it go.

 

[Timmay]

To sit with their hands crossed and say, "Well, again, this person had a pre-existing condition," won't hold up with the public if this keeps happening. That is all I am saying.

I think the key here is "if this keeps happening". I would agree with you at that point..."If". As of now...what are they to do...in all seriousness, what should Disney do today that they have not already done?

 

[WDWFREAK53]

I think the key here is "if this keeps happening". I would agree with you at that point..."If". As of now...what are they to do...in all seriousness, what should Disney do today that they have not already done?

First time...shame on you.
Second time...shame on me.
Third time...inexcusable.

Yes, this could be just 2 "flukes" and may never happen again (let's hope!) and that would be incredible!

What should they do today? That's the big question. I can't give you an answer...I would, however, wait until the first batch of autopsy results are back before they do anything.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

I'm going to predict that Disney won't do anything about this. And I believe that will be the case because like as has been said before, there's no good way out of this for them. So status quo will win out.

I can't think of any attraction (ride) in any park that was closed after someone died on it and no malfunction was detected. Not right off the top of my head, at least.

In a way, closing it could look like an admission of some form of guilt by Disney... Which they don't want to do and wouldn't do. That's how the press would attack that story... "Disney closes controversial intense space simulation ride following two deaths!!!!" Disney doesn't want that.

Changing it and making it tamer would make the ride worthless... Think for a second... Its only real hook is its intensity. Take that away, and you've got a glorified video game.

And obviously, doing nothing means potential for bad press on the current tragedy. But even this "bad press" can't imply fault with Disney. Basically, it's all bark and no bite.

And like it or not, the accounting department comes into play in this one, too.

"Hey acccountants... We're going to close this $100,000,000 ride we built. What's that? No, it didn't malfuntion. Yeah, it's a popular ride. Why are we closing it? Eh. Bad press."

News outlets can write as many stories as they want... But none of them can say that the ride malfuntioned causing a death. That, combined with the fact that they're still worried about the return on investment of not only the ride, but the land and building as well I'm sure... Means nothing will happen.

If anything, I'd bet we get even BIGGER "smack you across the face warnings", telling people in plain and simple language the risks associated. They might change the verbage to also say something about undiagnosed conditions as well.

And I don't see anything wrong with them doing things this way. Statistically speaking, M:S is extremely safe. If people read the warnings (as people who have posted here have done and not ridden) and make good decisions on if they should ride, the reported incidences would drop further. Why do you think we haven't seen any lawsuits from those seeking treatment after the ride? My guess is that a good portion of those that sought treatment weren't good candidates for the ride and should have heeded the warnings.

That obviously doesn't cover those with undiagnosed conditions, such as this case. That's why I'd imagine they change the warning system in some way.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

I'm going to predict that Disney won't do anything about this. And I believe that will be the case because like as has been said before, there's no good way out of this for them. So status quo will win out.

I can't think of any attraction (ride) in any park that was closed after someone died on it and no malfunction was detected. Not right off the top of my head, at least.

In a way, closing it could look like an admission of some form of guilt by Disney... Which they don't want to do and wouldn't do. That's how the press would attack that story... "Disney closes controversial intense space simulation ride following two deaths!!!!" Disney doesn't want that.

Changing it and making it tamer would make the ride worthless... Think for a second... Its only real hook is its intensity. Take that away, and you've got a glorified video game.

And obviously, doing nothing means potential for bad press on the current tragedy. But even this "bad press" can't imply fault with Disney. Basically, it's all bark and no bite.

And like it or not, the accounting department comes into play in this one, too.

"Hey acccountants... We're going to close this $100,000,000 ride we built. What's that? No, it didn't malfuntion. Yeah, it's a popular ride. Why are we closing it? Eh. Bad press."

News outlets can write as many stories as they want... But none of them can say that the ride malfuntioned causing a death. That, combined with the fact that they're still worried about the return on investment of not only the ride, but the land and building as well I'm sure... Means nothing will happen.

If anything, I'd bet we get even BIGGER "smack you across the face warnings", telling people in plain and simple language the risks associated. They might change the verbage to also say something about undiagnosed conditions as well.

And I don't see anything wrong with them doing things this way. Statistically speaking, M:S is extremely safe. If people read the warnings (as people who have posted here have done and not ridden) and make good decisions on if they should ride, the reported incidences would drop further. Why do you think we haven't seen any lawsuits from those seeking treatment after the ride? My guess is that a good portion of those that sought treatment weren't good candidates for the ride and should have heeded the warnings.

That obviously doesn't cover those with undiagnosed conditions, such as this case. That's why I'd imagine they change the warning system in some way.

Excellent post and you are correct about everything you stated. The problem with the ride, in my opinion, is that it requires the person riding it to "follow safety instructions" whereas other attractions don't...the only safety required is sitting seatbelted into a seat.

 

[Timmay]

First time...shame on you.
Second time...shame on me.
Third time...inexcusable.

Sorry, not trying to be mean spirited, but that doesn't make much sense in this case. I do not understand what your point is.

In the past 10 months, two individuals (one we know for sure had a serious medical condition) have died after riding M:S.

Now, the ride has been open how long? About 8 and a half million people have ridden it. I could understand if the ride had only been open those 10 months, but it hasn't. As of now, it sure appears to be a "fluke" regarding the two incidents due to the fact it wasn't happening before.