lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
There have been reports that he had a spinal cord injury.
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News Guest dies, found unresponsive after riding Stardust Racers
- Thread starter mkt
- Start date
disneylandtour
Well-Known Member
Before that accident, people had formed many favorable memories about Big Thunder for decades. That is not to minimize the tragedy there or to justify it. But people didn't look at Big Thunder and first think: someone died there. But right now, hardly anyone has been on Stardust. If the trial or investigation drags out for a long time, Universal will need to weigh that all the coaster is doing during this period is reminding people that someone died on it. I'm sure Universal could re-open the coaster--maybe with changes to rider guidance or possible to the track, vehicles, or restraints themselves--but they'll need to weigh brand damage if they're looking at a long and drawn out process. Universal is not Six Flags. They're are trying to pivot more to a family audience--and this isn't helping. Ultimately it might be more centered on what most helps the park in the immediate future versus what they ultimately could do. Then again, this investigation might end up being a short process, though I do think the family's lawyer is going to try to keep this in the news until there's a settlement. But generally I think things, with investigations and a high profile lawsuit, are making this messier.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
I’ve had back issues and still chose to ride Indiana Jones in Paris (iykyk) - i would not expect my back issues to cause blunt force trauma that would kill me.
disneylandtour
Well-Known Member
that is 100% not true. I keep getting questions from non-theme-park friends about it--like a lot of questions.
Vegas Disney Fan
Well-Known Member
I agree, if I were in Orlando and going to Epic tomorrow I’d be praying it wasn’t on the closed board when I showed up, I wouldn’t hesitate to ride it.
disneylandtour
Well-Known Member
When two people tragically died on Mission Space, both were quickly ruled as deaths related to pre-existing conditions. One was an undiagnosed heart condition, the other excessively high blood pressure. I believe one was an absolute tragedy, the other a person who based on posted guidance probably shouldn't have gotten on the ride. In both cases, the ride was re-opened fairly quickly. That's not what happened here. In this case, some element of this ride essentially beat this rider to death--a rider who according to posted guidance (at least from what we know) should've been cleared to ride. How that happened? No one, at least in the public, knows. That's the difference. And it's hard to say conclusively that the ride was operating as intended if one passenger left it with multiple blunt trauma injuries that resulted in death.
EricsBiscuit
Well-Known Member
It does not matter that he didn’t know riding a roller coaster with the condition could cause his death. What matters is that he did know (or should have known, I.e. constructive knowledge) that he should not ride the ride with back or neck problems.
Warning signs exist for a reason. If we all of a sudden make them meaningless, then attraction operators will be forced to shell out massive payouts to any fool (yes, fool) who ignores them. That means that insurance premiums will go up and your ticket prices will too.
Making warning signs legally meaningless would also encourage people who should not be riding these rides to do so because they know they can be compensated if things go wrong.
Rides are a buyer beware business. The danger of riding a roller coaster with multiple inversions and launches to someone with back and neck issues is obvious. See Murphy v. Steeplechase Amusement Co.
The man who died either wasn’t in his right mind or was foolish to ride it. There. I said it. God rest his soul but he should not have ridden it. If anything, Uni should not have allowed him on.
disneylandtour
Well-Known Member
I think that was one online site. We will see what comes out. But if that was part of the official record and if it was a contributing factor, both Uni and Mack should've been all over that very quickly as it would've changed at least part of the overall narrative. But oddly--if this were true and a contributing factor--it hasn't yet been pushed by stakeholders into the public dialogue.
Vegas Disney Fan
Well-Known Member
I think the terms “blunt impact injury” and “blunt force trauma” are being misunderstood to mean a significant injury, they can be but it’s more of a catch all term for any injury sustained from an impact, even something as minor as a slap.
“Blunt force trauma happens when you sustain an injury after an impact or forceful movements injure you. Those injuries can range from slight skin redness or a minor bruise to broken bones and internal injuries. Blunt force trauma is extremely common. It’s the most common cause of traumatic injuries and deaths worldwide.”
my.clevelandclinic.org
It’s similar to a medical examiner saying a death is a homicide, many people assume that means a murder but it’s simply a catch all term for a death caused by another. That could be anything from premeditated murder to an innocent accident like slipping on ice on the sidewalk.
Until we know more it’s equally likely the blunt impact injuries were caused by a solid metal bar that would kill all of us or a padded head cushion that would only be a threat to a person with a very specific preexisting spine condition.
“Blunt force trauma happens when you sustain an injury after an impact or forceful movements injure you. Those injuries can range from slight skin redness or a minor bruise to broken bones and internal injuries. Blunt force trauma is extremely common. It’s the most common cause of traumatic injuries and deaths worldwide.”
What Is Blunt Force Trauma?
Blunt force trauma causes injuries that may go deeper than your skin. Learn how they work and what to do about them.
my.clevelandclinic.org
It’s similar to a medical examiner saying a death is a homicide, many people assume that means a murder but it’s simply a catch all term for a death caused by another. That could be anything from premeditated murder to an innocent accident like slipping on ice on the sidewalk.
Until we know more it’s equally likely the blunt impact injuries were caused by a solid metal bar that would kill all of us or a padded head cushion that would only be a threat to a person with a very specific preexisting spine condition.
It doesn't help that the ME did not determine a natural cause of death, but one requiring significantly more investigation. If it would have been a natural cause, that which prohibited him from riding (or not), then we probably would have seen the ride open by now like has happened in other ride-related deaths that were natural in cause. That is not what has happened here. The ride looks like it will be shut down for a significant amount of time, which would not normally happen if it was simply that the victim was killed because of a medical issue that was completely unrelated to the ride itself.
CoastalElite64
Well-Known Member
If this could happen to anyone who passes out then something needs to be changed.
cjkeating
Well-Known Member
But surely your back issue could have been a lot worse after riding it so not a smart thing to go?
And yes I know Indiana Jones in Paris, the only coaster where on one occasion it felt like my spine was briefly being crushed during the vertical loop.
cjkeating
Well-Known Member
Yet it seems unlikely just passing out is enough to cause this as there would had been reports of similar injuries from the hundreds of millions if not billion ride cycles Mack/Intanin/Gerstlauer coaster have run with a similar restraint system.
The leading theory right now has to be his spinal issues were exasperated by the coaster which led to an unnatural range of motion which a typical guest would not achieve if they passed out.
Fido Chuckwagon
Well-Known Member
You have absolutely no basis upon which to make this statement.
Fido Chuckwagon
Well-Known Member
While I think we all agree that this is beyond a laughing matter, I think the word you are searching for is “posthumously.”
EricsBiscuit
Well-Known Member
If you knew you had a spinal cord injury, would you ride any roller coaster? He shouldn’t have even been on Hiccup’s, which is a deceptively intense coaster.
Fido Chuckwagon
Well-Known Member
This is just factually incorrect. “Spinal Cord Injury” denotes an incredibly wide range of conditions and Universal’s own rider requirements for that ride do not appear to prohibit him from riding, based upon what little information we have right now on his actual condition, other than “spinal cord injury.” While it may eventually turn out that he shouldn’t have been riding this, anyone who is stating as fact that he shouldn’t have, and was negligent, based on the complete lack of information we have right now, is full of it.
EricsBiscuit
Well-Known Member
No, the rider requirements clearly did prohibit him from riding. They clearly prohibit any riders from riding who are experiencing back or neck problems. Further, he likely couldn’t satisfy the requirement about natural support.
Fido Chuckwagon
Well-Known Member
They don’t, based on what little information we have right now, but I will discontinue arguing with someone who so misunderstands who owes who what duty of care under our laws that he thinks this rider’s girlfriend is negligent for letting an adult ride this ride.
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