What if this happened at WDW?

[21stamps]

Ok so on another thread we've been talking about amusement parks, and on several threads there have been discussions about liability, and responsibility for the safety of others, even if not technically liable.

So here's a situation that happened while I was visiting an amusement park last month, wasn't that big of deal at the time, but now I'm curious as to what people here would say if the same thing happened at Walt Disney World.

Me and Kiddo were in line for about 35 minutes for a ride called "The Beast", we got in line 10 minutes before the park closed and we were towards the back, no where near the loading platform.

An announcement came over the speaker "The Beast is temporarily closed. We do not know when it will be open. You can wait if you'd like." Lots of groans, but most stayed. Park was closed so no other rides would be available, we've all been there for awhile, so why not wait it out.

15 minutes or so go by, and a park employee walks to the back of the line. He announces "Follow Me!" We all look at each other confused, but follow him out of the exit.

Once we were all out of the turnstiles and enclosures the employee announces "The Beast will remain closed for the night. BUT I'm taking you all to Diamondback!!" My son was clearly distraught bc he does not reach the height minimum for the replacement ride. He exclaims "That's a mean man, mommy!" and obviously I was embarrassed that the man overheard him. We left.

A week later we were back in line for The Beast. Same worker is there and recognizes us.. He pulls me to the side and says "I felt so bad for your little boy, here is what happened that night.."

"A teenager stuck his hand out of the car to grab a railing, while going down a hill. Sliced his hand open and we were required to close it as a result. He was taken to first aid and then to the hospital."

There are signs all over said ride to "keep you hands and arms inside the car". It is a wooden rollercoaster. Who in their right mind would try to grab a wooden rail while going 60mph????

If you are still reading this 10 chapter book,

Do You Think a Park Should be Liable for That Situation? More so- Do you think they should change something to prevent it from happening again?

I don't. I've never heard any more about it. Nothing is being changed on the ride to prevent that from happening to anyone else. It was a stupid move caused by rider error who ignored posted signage, as well as announcements stating the same.

If it happened at WDW though, would people be demanding change?

 

[networkpro]

Ok so on another thread we've been talking about amusement parks, and on several threads there have been discussions about liability.

If it happened at WDW though, would people be demanding change?

You can cure ignorance with education, but you cant fix stupid. Things like this happen all the time is spite of warning signs and cast member verbal instructions. You'd have to severely restrict the ability of a guest to interact with the environment to preclude these things like putting them in a hamster ball or straight-jacket.

 

[cheesecake]

Sorry your son couldn't go on the ride! I do think it was nice that they tried to make it up to the people waiting by letting them go on a comparable ride after the park closed.

As far as there being a lawsuit, I would say no. I'm going out on a limb and assuming that there were the written and verbal warnings to keep hands, feet, etc in the vehicle and remain seated like there is in wdw and every other amusement park I've ever been to. And like you sad, grabbing a pole while going past it at 60 mph is a very poor idea, and I think most people with a degree of common sense and an elementary understanding of physics would see that. I'm very sorry that kid got hurt, but as long as the warning plaques were there, I can't see how this could be the fault of the amusment park. Unless we make all roller coasters have completely enclosed cars, people are just going to have to use common sense.

 

[Schneewittchen]

I've read about quite a few stupid human tricks that haven't resulted in procedure changes. Wikipedia lists a bunch of Darwin award type incidents from Disneyland: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incidents_at_Disneyland_Resort

Enjoy!

 

[Hockey89]

Ok so on another thread we've been talking about amusement parks, and on several threads there have been discussions about liability, and responsibility for the safety of others, even if not technically liable.

So here's a situation that happened while I was visiting an amusement park last month, wasn't that big of deal at the time, but now I'm curious as to what people here would say if the same thing happened at Walt Disney World.

Me and Kiddo were in line for about 35 minutes for a ride called "The Beast", we got in line 10 minutes before the park closed and we were towards the back, no where near the loading platform.

An announcement came over the speaker "The Beast is temporarily closed. We do not know when it will be open. You can wait if you'd like." Lots of groans, but most stayed. Park was closed so no other rides would be available, we've all been there for awhile, so why not wait it out.

15 minutes or so go by, and a park employee walks to the back of the line. He announces "Follow Me!" We all look at each other confused, but follow him out of the exit.

Once we were all out of the turnstiles and enclosures the employee announces "The Beast will remain closed for the night. BUT I'm taking you all to Diamondback!!" My son was clearly distraught bc he does not reach the height minimum for the replacement ride. He exclaims "That's a mean man, mommy!" and obviously I was embarrassed that the man overheard him. We left.

A week later we were back in line for The Beast. Same worker is there and recognizes us.. He pulls me to the side and says "I felt so bad for your little boy, here is what happened that night.."

"A teenager stuck his hand out of the car to grab a railing, while going down a hill. Sliced his hand open and we were required to close it as a result. He was taken to first aid and then to the hospital."

There are signs all over said ride to "keep you hands and arms inside the car". It is a wooden rollercoaster. Who in their right mind would try to grab a wooden rail while going 60mph????

If you are still reading this 10 chapter book,

Do You Think a Park Should be Liable for That Situation? More so- Do you think they should change something to prevent it from happening again?

I don't. I've never heard any more about it. Nothing is being changed on the ride to prevent that from happening to anyone else. It was a stupid move caused by rider error who ignored posted signage, as well as announcements stating the same.

If it happened at WDW though, would people be demanding change?

No and no.... You can't fix stupid and there are plenty of signs...

 

[G8rchamps]

I'm going out on a limb

I see what you did there

 

[Rinx]

It happened somewhat recently on Pirates when a man's thumb was severed. He even admitted he was doing something he shouldn't have been and I don't think anything legal became of it. However, on a different note, if a CM pulled a guest to the side and divulged such details as the OP's mentioned employee, I do think that would be severely frowned upon and possibly discipline worthy if found out.

 

[21stamps]

Sorry your son couldn't go on the ride! I do think it was nice that they tried to make it up to the people waiting by letting them go on a comparable ride after the park closed.

As far as there being a lawsuit, I would say no. I'm going out on a limb and assuming that there were the written and verbal warnings to keep hands, feet, etc in the vehicle and remain seated like there is in wdw and every other amusement park I've ever been to. And like you sad, grabbing a pole while going past it at 60 mph is a very poor idea, and I think most people with a degree of common sense and an elementary understanding of physics would see that. I'm very sorry that kid got hurt, but as long as the warning plaques were there, I can't see how this could be the fault of the amusment park. Unless we make all roller coasters have completely enclosed cars, people are just going to have to use common sense.

He got over it...but still refers to the park employee as the "mean man" every time we see him .. Lol. I do think it's more in jest because the guy high fives my son each time we see him.
I was talking more about "perceived responsibility" in the public's eyes more than legal liability. Recently I've read quite a few people say that we have a responsibility to prevent situations where someone could be harmed- even if it was there own fault. i.e. Bulldozing River country so people can not be tempted to go inside and potentially get hurt, even though it would be their own responsibility for ignoring clear warnings. Or something like a Disney being responsible for someone's foot being run over by a scooter, because once again, of a stupid human error. (I'm not looking to discuss those situations just giving examples of breaking rules).

You all have restored my faith in humanity, and common sense, with your comments

 

[21stamps]

It happened somewhat recently on Pirates when a man's thumb was severed. He even admitted he was doing something he shouldn't have been and I don't think anything legal became of it. However, on a different note, if a CM pulled a guest to the side and divulged such details as the OP's mentioned employee, I do think that would be severely frowned upon and possibly discipline worthy if found out.

I'm sure he wasn't supposed to say anything, which is why he didn't announce it loudly, and we were at the back of the coaster by ourselves. My son and I are there weekly, sometimes twice per week, unless we are out of town. My son just made 48" with shoes on in mid June. He is now finally 48" without shoes as of about a month ago. He pretty much gets pulled aside every ride, even with a bracelet. We have been on the same "big rides" over and over the past few months, so most of the employees recognize us and talk to us while we're there. My kiddo is 6 years old and was visibly upset after waiting in line for about an hour and then not being able to ride, while everyone else was going on a different coaster.
The park employee was just being nice by telling me the next time he saw us.

 

[cheesecake]

I was talking more about "perceived responsibility" in the public's eyes more than legal liability. Recently I've read quite a few people say that we have a responsibility to prevent situations where someone could be harmed- even if it was there own fault. i.e. Bulldozing River country so people can not be tempted to go inside and potentially get hurt, even though it would be their own responsibility for ignoring clear warnings. Or something like Disney being responsible for someone's foot being run over by a scooter, because once again, of a stupid human error. (I'm not looking to discuss those situations just giving examples of breaking rules).

You all have restored my faith in humanity, and common sense, with your comments

Gotcha, sorry I misunderstood!

I think this particular case, 99% of people would say that the teen was at fault, and the amusement park did everything possible to prevent the situation. I have also noticed the trend in public belief that Disney should take more precautionary measures to prevent incidents and I do agree with it to some extent. But honestly, Disney isn't anyone's nanny and can't be held responsible when people purposefully go against clear safety warnings.

 

[danlb_2000]

Ok so on another thread we've been talking about amusement parks, and on several threads there have been discussions about liability, and responsibility for the safety of others, even if not technically liable.

So here's a situation that happened while I was visiting an amusement park last month, wasn't that big of deal at the time, but now I'm curious as to what people here would say if the same thing happened at Walt Disney World.

Me and Kiddo were in line for about 35 minutes for a ride called "The Beast", we got in line 10 minutes before the park closed and we were towards the back, no where near the loading platform.

An announcement came over the speaker "The Beast is temporarily closed. We do not know when it will be open. You can wait if you'd like." Lots of groans, but most stayed. Park was closed so no other rides would be available, we've all been there for awhile, so why not wait it out.

15 minutes or so go by, and a park employee walks to the back of the line. He announces "Follow Me!" We all look at each other confused, but follow him out of the exit.

Once we were all out of the turnstiles and enclosures the employee announces "The Beast will remain closed for the night. BUT I'm taking you all to Diamondback!!" My son was clearly distraught bc he does not reach the height minimum for the replacement ride. He exclaims "That's a mean man, mommy!" and obviously I was embarrassed that the man overheard him. We left.

A week later we were back in line for The Beast. Same worker is there and recognizes us.. He pulls me to the side and says "I felt so bad for your little boy, here is what happened that night.."

"A teenager stuck his hand out of the car to grab a railing, while going down a hill. Sliced his hand open and we were required to close it as a result. He was taken to first aid and then to the hospital."

There are signs all over said ride to "keep you hands and arms inside the car". It is a wooden rollercoaster. Who in their right mind would try to grab a wooden rail while going 60mph????

If you are still reading this 10 chapter book,

Do You Think a Park Should be Liable for That Situation? More so- Do you think they should change something to prevent it from happening again?

I don't. I've never heard any more about it. Nothing is being changed on the ride to prevent that from happening to anyone else. It was a stupid move caused by rider error who ignored posted signage, as well as announcements stating the same.

If it happened at WDW though, would people be demanding change?

I know Disney does envelope testing on their coasters to be sure everything is beyond reach in case someone does stick out their hands. I assumed this was standard practice on all coasters but I guess not.

 

[TXDisney]

We did a split stay at universal and Disney a few years ago. We did universal for 3 days 1st then 7 at WDW. Our 1st day at universal the ride Doom which is similar to ToT broke on us and started smoking. Luckily it was only up in the air about 25 feet when it happened but we were stuck there for like 10min without anyone saying anything bc operators aren't inside the area with you. My wife was not ok with this. We never said anything, but I still to this day refuse to ride that ride. My aunt also had an issue on the big water gloom ride at universal. She actually got launched from the ride even though her seat belt was on. She was embarrassed and never pursued anything. All the gave her without asking was a lifelong pass.

 

[raven]

I know Disney does envelope testing on their coasters to be sure everything is beyond reach in case someone does stick out their hands. I assumed this was standard practice on all coasters but I guess not.

They install a rig during testing with several extensions on it representing guest reach. I don't have a photo but I'm sure someone will post one.

 

[21stamps]

I know Disney does envelope testing on their coasters to be sure everything is beyond reach in case someone does stick out their hands. I assumed this was standard practice on all coasters but I guess not.

This coaster has been around since 1979 and has won countless awards. It would not be easy to reach the rail. This is exactly what I was talking about...the mindset that warnings and rules are not enough.

Here's an old school photo before all roller coasters went to enhanced safety features on the trains... Back then, and now, the rules have
always been the same.

Here is current day safety...

 

[Rinx]

I'm sure he wasn't supposed to say anything, which is why he didn't announce it loudly, and we were at the back of the coaster by ourselves. My son and I are there weekly, sometimes twice per week, unless we are out of town. My son just made 48" with shoes on in mid June. He is now finally 48" without shoes as of about a month ago. He pretty much gets pulled aside every ride, even with a bracelet. We have been on the same "big rides" over and over the past few months, so most of the employees recognize us and talk to us while we're there. My kiddo is 6 years old and was visibly upset after waiting in line for about an hour and then not being able to ride, while everyone else was going on a different coaster.
The park employee was just being nice by telling me the next time he saw us.

Ok, I see. I didn't quite grasp the personal level of the convo and how you guys are regulars at that park. My hypothetical scenario was geared more towards a CM kind of just stating to any ole guest some kind of gruesome detail like that.

 

[SorcererMC]

There are signs all over said ride to "keep you hands and arms inside the car". It is a wooden rollercoaster. Who in their right mind would try to grab a wooden rail while going 60mph????

If you are still reading this 10 chapter book,

Do You Think a Park Should be Liable for That Situation? More so- Do you think they should change something to prevent it from happening again?

I don't. I've never heard any more about it. Nothing is being changed on the ride to prevent that from happening to anyone else. It was a stupid move caused by rider error who ignored posted signage, as well as announcements stating the same.

Without getting into the gory details of a similar amusement park case, generally I don't think the park can be found liable in these kinds of circumstances, due to the signage and announcements. Occasionally there is an individual who decides to go against such warnings for whatever reason, resulting in injury or death.

My view - I teach my teen to have respect for the rules, and to follow basic common sense known as 'Don't do dumb stuff' (which covers a lot of areas). I also think that teens are sometimes not 'in their right mind'.

 

[danlb_2000]

They install a rig during testing with several extensions on it representing guest reach. I don't have a photo but I'm sure someone will post one.

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

"A teenager stuck his hand out of the car to grab a railing, while going down a hill. Sliced his hand open and we were required to close it as a result. He was taken to first aid and then to the hospital."

This is why you don't mess with the World Record breaker The BEAST!

 

[21stamps]

View attachment 158512

Have they always done this? Or just in relatively recent years?

Without getting into the gory details of a similar amusement park case, generally I don't think the park can be found liable in these kinds of circumstances, due to the signage and announcements. Occasionally there is an individual who decides to go against such warnings for whatever reason, resulting in injury or death.

My view - I teach my teen to have respect for the rules, and to follow basic common sense known as 'Don't do dumb stuff' (which covers a lot of areas). I also think that teens are sometimes not 'in their right mind'.

Oh I did some extremely DUMB things as a tween/teen/20something lol. I have always been an adrenaline junkie, (although much more subtly now the past 6 years since became a mother and responsible for another human) kiddo is shaping out to share the love of an adrenaline rush..but I hope he doesn't do some of the things I have done. One mild example- When I was young we used to literally stand up-signs clearly say "Do Not Stand"- on the last seat of the last car on a backwards roller coaster. Going over the first hill you would fly up and then slam back down in your seat. It was a Blast! It was also Just Plain Dumb. Current day restraints now prevent that action.lol. In all my years though, I have never thought to stick a limb out where obviously it could get sliced or taken off completely. I think I almost take the "don't do dumb stuff" teachings to almost a frightening level, because of my own memories, and I have to always find the fine line of not installing fear...or at least only placing a healthy amount of fear

 

[21stamps]

We did a split stay at universal and Disney a few years ago. We did universal for 3 days 1st then 7 at WDW. Our 1st day at universal the ride Doom which is similar to ToT broke on us and started smoking. Luckily it was only up in the air about 25 feet when it happened but we were stuck there for like 10min without anyone saying anything bc operators aren't inside the area with you. My wife was not ok with this. We never said anything, but I still to this day refuse to ride that ride. My aunt also had an issue on the big water gloom ride at universal. She actually got launched from the ride even though her seat belt was on. She was embarrassed and never pursued anything. All the gave her without asking was a lifelong pass.

Being stuck is the worst. I hate it.