^^Sorry, here's the right link: http://articles.latimes.com/2003/nov/09/local/me-disney9

After the Thunder Mountain accident, the LATimes did an eye-opening article on the maintenance changes at Disney after 1997 when new management took over: http://articles.latimes.com/2003/nov/09/local/me-disney9.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This all has me thinking a little differently about amusement park rides. I just assume they're safe! Understand there's a risk to everything, but this is so not worth it. WTF

I am rethinking Disney, which is probably absurd but I am so horrified by this and have a 10 year old son.

I had a bad experience with two rides at Disney decades ago. Add to that the alligator tragedy and that's it.

+1. When you rely on a business to do required maintenance and safety inspections themselves, you run the risk of them not being done as well or as often as they should to save money. Disney failed to do this in the past in the Thunder Mountain Railroad and Columbia Sailing Ship deaths, http://www.themeparkinsider.com/news/response.cfm?ID=1389. Now they are doing noticeable cutbacks at the US Disneyland and Disney World resorts, http://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201604/5017/. Disney is about appearances and they have become reactive instead of preventative. As with any theme park or carnival, observe and be aware. If you don't like the way the ride looks or sounds including the kinds and use of restraints, attentiveness of the ride operators and attendants to each passenger and height/weight requirements, skip the ride.

The riders were held in by VELCRO! Complete fail.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In addition to a civil lawsuit, criminal actions should be explored. How this horrific looking contraption could have been open for public use is beyond me.

The guy who designed it is a high school dropout. He dropped out of school at age 24 and he's the 'inventor', the 'creative mind'.
Great idea.
http://grantland.com/features/the-wet-stuff-verruckt-waterslide-schlitterbahn/

So what. He is an engineer. Other pretty impressive people never finished high school or college. What a dumb thing to point out.

who?

For starters....

Richard Branson

Louis Armstrong

Tom Anderson - myspace co founder

Mario Andretti

Julie Andrews

Irving Berlin

John D. Rockefeller

Henry Ford

Francois Pinault

Roseanne Barr

Drew Barrymore

There are thousands - want me to keep going?

Drew Barrymore? PP, I just, I'm sorry, I'm going to have to ask you to leave.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This all has me thinking a little differently about amusement park rides. I just assume they're safe! Understand there's a risk to everything, but this is so not worth it. WTF

I am rethinking Disney, which is probably absurd but I am so horrified by this and have a 10 year old son.

My gut reaction is yes, that's absurd, but then if you think about it - how often are these rides getting inspected? Do all amusement parks follow strict guidelines? Yes, there's a risk to driving a car, but my justification there is that I need to get to work to pay the bills. Putting my 10 year old on a ride just for fun that might need repairs, or might be old, or whatever - what's the point? Too many of these stories and this one was really just horrifying.

That part of the story was discussed several pages back......but rides are inspected daily at amusement parks, well before the public sets foot in them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This all has me thinking a little differently about amusement park rides. I just assume they're safe! Understand there's a risk to everything, but this is so not worth it. WTF

I am rethinking Disney, which is probably absurd but I am so horrified by this and have a 10 year old son.

I had a bad experience with two rides at Disney decades ago. Add to that the alligator tragedy and that's it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know this is really gruesome but .......but the picture with the supposed 2 tarps is unclear and really they just look waded up /discarded so I think they show nothing really ....did his head actually come off or was it just an internal injury.

His head came off.

This has NOT actually been confirmed. All of the reports are just saying that witnesses are saying this. Some of the more reliable sources say it was an internal decapitation. Although the fact that they haven't denied it makes me think he was decapitated. I would think they would shut that rumor down pretty quickly if it was not true.

Every news source out there has confirmed this. What are you reading?

Not exactly. Every news source is reporting that sources/witnesses are saying this. It has not been verified by the authorities, park, family.

I too heard neck fracture/internal decapitation

those parents must be in agony.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This all has me thinking a little differently about amusement park rides. I just assume they're safe! Understand there's a risk to everything, but this is so not worth it. WTF

I am rethinking Disney, which is probably absurd but I am so horrified by this and have a 10 year old son.

Disney has a very good safety record for guests on rides. Their record for keeping their employees and characters safe isn't as stellar.

If you believe regulation is the key to safety, Disney World is not for you.

I believe regulation has benefits, but is not the "key." The safety measures for Disney rides are extraordinary. Regulation didn't get them there, it was litigation risk and the need to avoid bad PR. They're selling magic. Appearances are everything.

I know quite a few Disney employees. I wish Disney was as concerned about their employees. I think they're probably treated better than the teens who are imported for the summer by other amusement parks.

This article where they interviewed his friend from church is so sad: http://www.people.com/article/caleb-schwab-friend-water-slide-death-heaven-chocolate-milk. I'm an atheist, but I still found it sort of touching. What a tragedy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The age requirement was dropped at the start of this season.

The brother was watching from the ground and said to a worker, "My brother just died on one of your attractions." Then went to find his mother. So it must have been pretty horrific if the kid knew immediately that his brother was dead.

Also read that people had been complaining all summer that the Velcro straps on the ride were malfunctioning, probably due to wear and tear.

How horrifying. I hadn't seen that. So terrible.

Agree that ride needs to be shut down. Period.

This quote does not ring true for a 12-year old. Apparently the brother, Nate, was also screaming according to reports. There was also a young friend who was screaming and crying.

First PP quoted above. I agree about the wording not ringing true, but I think it's likely that he said something to that effect based on what else has been reported-- that the brothers were separated at the top and each went down with two adult strangers in consecutive rafts, that the parents were not at Verrucht with the two boys, that as soon Caleb's body slid to the bottom, the lifeguards held everyone back rather than try to administer any aid.

It would not have happened like this. They would not have been separated at the top. Groups are formed and weighed at the bottom. Riders are given wristbands indicating which group they are in. At the top, their bands are checked and they are weighed again as a group. Not that this is significant, but it shows how inaccurate and confused eye witness reports can be.

If you are a parent and republican voter then you supported the state dropping safety regulations. Why??

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know this is really gruesome but .......but the picture with the supposed 2 tarps is unclear and really they just look waded up /discarded so I think they show nothing really ....did his head actually come off or was it just an internal injury.

His head came off.

This has NOT actually been confirmed. All of the reports are just saying that witnesses are saying this. Some of the more reliable sources say it was an internal decapitation. Although the fact that they haven't denied it makes me think he was decapitated. I would think they would shut that rumor down pretty quickly if it was not true.

Every news source out there has confirmed this. What are you reading?

Not exactly. Every news source is reporting that sources/witnesses are saying this. It has not been verified by the authorities, park, family.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This all has me thinking a little differently about amusement park rides. I just assume they're safe! Understand there's a risk to everything, but this is so not worth it. WTF

I am rethinking Disney, which is probably absurd but I am so horrified by this and have a 10 year old son.

My gut reaction is yes, that's absurd, but then if you think about it - how often are these rides getting inspected? Do all amusement parks follow strict guidelines? Yes, there's a risk to driving a car, but my justification there is that I need to get to work to pay the bills. Putting my 10 year old on a ride just for fun that might need repairs, or might be old, or whatever - what's the point? Too many of these stories and this one was really just horrifying.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This all has me thinking a little differently about amusement park rides. I just assume they're safe! Understand there's a risk to everything, but this is so not worth it. WTF

I am rethinking Disney, which is probably absurd but I am so horrified by this and have a 10 year old son.

Disney has a very good safety record for guests on rides. Their record for keeping their employees and characters safe isn't as stellar.

If you believe regulation is the key to safety, Disney World is not for you.