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Breaking News: BTMR accident
- Thread starter stranger
- Start date
NemoRocks78
Seized
Things aren't looking good for ol' Thunder now.....maybe it is time for it to "hit the trails"...... 
NemoRocks78
Seized
Here's a KNBC news report.....
LOS ANGELES --
Two trains have reportedly collided on the Thunder Mountain ride at Disneyland.
A Disneyland representative told NBC4 that two of the trains on that ride have bumped into each other, and that the attraction is closed.
An 11-year-old boy complained of neck injury, but has not yet been transported to a hospital.
Disneyland said it hopes the repopen the ride later this evening.
NBC4 will provide updates as they become available.
The poll at the website asks if the ride should be kept open....68% say no, 17% say yes, and 16% say they aren't sure.
(EDIT-Looks like stranger got a link up before me.)
LOS ANGELES --
Two trains have reportedly collided on the Thunder Mountain ride at Disneyland.
A Disneyland representative told NBC4 that two of the trains on that ride have bumped into each other, and that the attraction is closed.
An 11-year-old boy complained of neck injury, but has not yet been transported to a hospital.
Disneyland said it hopes the repopen the ride later this evening.
NBC4 will provide updates as they become available.
The poll at the website asks if the ride should be kept open....68% say no, 17% say yes, and 16% say they aren't sure.
(EDIT-Looks like stranger got a link up before me.)
imagineer boy
Well-Known Member
For the love of god, why does BTMRR keep having accidents?! Was this a CM error? I certainly hope so instead of a ride system error. Can't they train their CMs to work the ride properly.
Down with T. Irby!
Down with T. Irby!
Figment1986
Well-Known Member
This is terrible... The second accident this year... and a train colision causiong a little boy to have a slight neck injury....
I hope Disney fixes this problem... (Maby time for money for even more monitering softwear... and breaking installed on the cars??)
I hope Disney fixes this problem... (Maby time for money for even more monitering softwear... and breaking installed on the cars??)
xfkirsten
New Member
Another one!? I'm really curious as to how this happened, mechanically. Is BTMR like other coasters in that the trains are suppossed to automatically brake if they get too close to each other?
I do notice, too, that they say "bumped" so I assume the trains weren't going fast.
-Kirsten
I do notice, too, that they say "bumped" so I assume the trains weren't going fast.
-Kirsten
cherrynegra
Well-Known Member
Yes, I'm curious as to how bad of an "accident" this was. Especially if they planned on reopening it later in the evening. Gosh. I hate to believe in a ride being cursed, but Holy Cow!! What's going on?? :veryconfu
xfkirsten
New Member
I just had to... I couldn't help it...
Photos/video ganked from various sites...
My Newest LJ icon! Warning: joke probably in poor taste...
:lol: :lol:
One ticket to Hell, please! :fork:
-Kirsten
Photos/video ganked from various sites...
My Newest LJ icon! Warning: joke probably in poor taste...
:lol: :lol:
One ticket to Hell, please! :fork:
-Kirsten
I could give you one guess how this could happen, the letter....."E"....lets just say that the thinking behind breaking down the perm. maintaince teams (because an "outside" source said D/L could save $$$$ and that what was being done at all dept. at Disney) at each coaster "could be" the cause to problems to the coasters.
But, I guess you cant even blame "it" to D/Land....look at the loss of Animation....look at the studio buying other computer animated movies instead of developing a great product (wonder why a good portion of Florida FA has applyed @ Pixar)....and the pure sucsess of the Disney store making tons of $$ only to be sold off soon and international stores sold off all together. Dont even ask about ABC...you get good shows like 'Alias' and 'Whos line' yet we continue to show reruns of HP. Oh should I even mention about Disney channel one of the most sought after channels now has become Nickoleden 2. Not even an original Mickey cartoon is shown anymore.
Not to mention that the stock hasnt even split in over 7yrs....cast members have fewer "sign-in" days this year....2 words "Stars Diners"...hmm entry level cast members earning less than the In-N-Out Burger workers getting gauarnteed 401k and mgnt. training, working the rides and serving food to thousdands of people every day.
D/L will be doing some serious "dancing" in the next few days.
But, I guess you cant even blame "it" to D/Land....look at the loss of Animation....look at the studio buying other computer animated movies instead of developing a great product (wonder why a good portion of Florida FA has applyed @ Pixar)....and the pure sucsess of the Disney store making tons of $$ only to be sold off soon and international stores sold off all together. Dont even ask about ABC...you get good shows like 'Alias' and 'Whos line' yet we continue to show reruns of HP. Oh should I even mention about Disney channel one of the most sought after channels now has become Nickoleden 2. Not even an original Mickey cartoon is shown anymore.
Not to mention that the stock hasnt even split in over 7yrs....cast members have fewer "sign-in" days this year....2 words "Stars Diners"...hmm entry level cast members earning less than the In-N-Out Burger workers getting gauarnteed 401k and mgnt. training, working the rides and serving food to thousdands of people every day.
D/L will be doing some serious "dancing" in the next few days.
xfkirsten
New Member
Update...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/07/08/state2321EDT0199.DTL
Three injured on Disneyland roller coaster
Thursday, July 8, 2004
(07-08) 20:21 PDT ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) --
Three people suffered minor back and neck pain Thursday after two trains bumped into each other on the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride at Disneyland, authorities said.
It was the second accident on the roller coaster in less than a year
A 10-year-old boy, a 44-year-old woman and a 42-year-old man were transported by private ambulance to a local area hospital after an accident on the roller coaster about 5:05 p.m., said Maria Sabol, an Anaheim Fire Department spokeswoman.
The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride was closed pending an investigation by the state Division of Occupational Health and Safety, according to a Disney statement.
Police Sgt. Rick Martinez said that because the accident was "not serious enough to warrant a police investigation," the department would take a medical aid report and leave the investigation to state officials.
Last September, 22-year-old Marcelo Torres of Gardena was killed on the same roller coaster when the car in which he was riding ran into a derailed locomotive in front of him. Ten other people were hurt.
The ride reopened on March 10 after state safety officials cleared it for operation. State officials concluded after a three-month investigation that faulty maintenance had caused the collision.
Just days after the ride resumed operating, Torres' parents suggested at a press conference that more time was needed to study flaws that caused the fatal accident.
Twenty-four people have claimed injuries from riding the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad since mid-2001, the state reported last fall.
-Kirsten
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/07/08/state2321EDT0199.DTL
Three injured on Disneyland roller coaster
Thursday, July 8, 2004
(07-08) 20:21 PDT ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) --
Three people suffered minor back and neck pain Thursday after two trains bumped into each other on the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride at Disneyland, authorities said.
It was the second accident on the roller coaster in less than a year
A 10-year-old boy, a 44-year-old woman and a 42-year-old man were transported by private ambulance to a local area hospital after an accident on the roller coaster about 5:05 p.m., said Maria Sabol, an Anaheim Fire Department spokeswoman.
The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride was closed pending an investigation by the state Division of Occupational Health and Safety, according to a Disney statement.
Police Sgt. Rick Martinez said that because the accident was "not serious enough to warrant a police investigation," the department would take a medical aid report and leave the investigation to state officials.
Last September, 22-year-old Marcelo Torres of Gardena was killed on the same roller coaster when the car in which he was riding ran into a derailed locomotive in front of him. Ten other people were hurt.
The ride reopened on March 10 after state safety officials cleared it for operation. State officials concluded after a three-month investigation that faulty maintenance had caused the collision.
Just days after the ride resumed operating, Torres' parents suggested at a press conference that more time was needed to study flaws that caused the fatal accident.
Twenty-four people have claimed injuries from riding the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad since mid-2001, the state reported last fall.
-Kirsten
raven
Well-Known Member
xfkirsten said:
Yes. Like most modern coasters, there are track sections called "blocks" (or block breaks). They are placed at various places around the track. You will notice these on straight sections of track. Lift hills are also block areas because they can be stopped if needed. Blocks are used to safely space the trains apart.
Here's how it works: A train at the station will not depart until the train infront of it is over the lift hill (first block area). The train on the lift hill will not depart from the lift hill until the train infront of that one is past another set of blocks. Once a train passes a set of blocks, a sensor will open the previous block letting the next train pass, and so on.
You will not even notice these areas if the ride is operating normaly (meaning your train will not stop). This is because the trains are evenly spaced well enough that the block areas are open.
If a train is to stop out on the track somewhere, the block area behind it will close and stop the next train from entering the next section of track. But all of the areas can also be manually manipulated by a ride operator.
What may have happened is that a train wheel may have de-railed and the sensors didn't catch it or the operator in the loading area pushed the release button for a train to enter the station when another one was still there. I believe the later one in may have been true in Thursday's incident. The word "bumped" make it sounds like it may have been in the station area where trains are going at a slower speed.
I agree, that second one sounds very plausible, especially considering the recent history of CM error at that attraction. Also, I saw a photo on one site that showed it happened at the station area.
Wasn`t a blocking error discovered after last September? If I recall once the trains are over the last hill there is no way to stop it (gravity takes over) until it reaches the station area. If another train triggers a block in the station area and another has already past the 3rd lift it can`t be stopped. Or something like that. If that is the case, don`t you think they could have resolved it by now?
barnum42
New Member
Cue another round of mad speculation and finger pointing.
The first thing that cropped into my head about the boy with the neck injury is his daddy saying to him "Fake an injury kid and we will be millionaires".
In the world of fake injury law suits we live in it's a sad reflection that it is a my first thought rather than "is the kid OK?"
The first thing that cropped into my head about the boy with the neck injury is his daddy saying to him "Fake an injury kid and we will be millionaires".
In the world of fake injury law suits we live in it's a sad reflection that it is a my first thought rather than "is the kid OK?"
barnum42 said:
Well, that's the world we live in
Hopefully he IS ok. I am no stranger to neck injury and unfortunately it is the type of thing that often seems to go away, only to reappear years later. My first signs came 2-3 years after the initial accident and now it's a problem I have to live with. I was told that even low speeds could leave lasting damage. Being 10, hopefully it won't be the case for him.
Lee
Adventurer
According to some info I just got...
One train was in the station.
Another train was just arriving at the station.
The transfer track that was supposed to send the second train into the other side of the station malfunctioned and it either did not move, or did not fully get into the correct position.
The second train hit part of the transfer track and that caused one of the cars to jump the track and run into the car ahead of it.
Two trains did not hit.
At this point it looks to be a system error with the PLC, or a mechanical error with the transfer mechanism.
At least that is what I'm hearing out of Cali.......
One train was in the station.
Another train was just arriving at the station.
The transfer track that was supposed to send the second train into the other side of the station malfunctioned and it either did not move, or did not fully get into the correct position.
The second train hit part of the transfer track and that caused one of the cars to jump the track and run into the car ahead of it.
Two trains did not hit.
At this point it looks to be a system error with the PLC, or a mechanical error with the transfer mechanism.
At least that is what I'm hearing out of Cali.......
xfkirsten
New Member
marni1971 said:
Nope, the accident last summer was found to be poor maintenance. Basically, the guys in charge of checking each train weren't doing their jobs correctly. They were signing off on stuff that hadn't been done, and sending out trains that hadn't been inspected. And it came around and bit them in the .
-Kirsten