The Interpreter Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 A 34-YEAR-old man died after falling off a roller coaster at a popular amusement park in Tokyo in the third incident there in three months, officials have confirmed. The man fell from a four-seat vehicle on the Spinning Coaster Maihime (Dancing Princess) when it reached a curve some eight metres above the ground. Police suspected the man, whose name was not immediately released, might have failed to properly lock himself into the ride at the Tokyo Dome City Attractions park with a safety bar. At the same park in November, a female worker had three of her fingers cut off when she was inspecting a motor in a vertical drop ride, a park official said. In December, a small girl was slightly injured when a bolt came off another roller coaster and hit her... http://www.heraldsun...x-1225997080067 Picture here: http://www.google.co...&index=0&ned=us Another article here: http://www.google.co...f85969d6f24126e Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjkjkj Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Sounds like a safe, well maintained park.... NOT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 Japan is normally safety obsessed...so I was stunned to read that part about the man may have failed to properly lock HIMSELF into the ride. WHAT? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjkjkj Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 That struck me as odd too. I was thinking "shouldn't somebody have checked his lapbar if HE failed to lock it properly, someone should have checked it after he locked it." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 Police plan to search the offices of Tokyo Dome Corp. soon on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in the death of a man who fell off a roller coaster in motion at its amusement park in central Tokyo, as it is believed that the safety bar for the victim's seat was not securely locked....According to investigators, before the machine moves, passengers on the roller coaster -- with each car holding two pairs of seats with their backs together -- have to pull the safety bars installed in front of their seats toward themselves until the devices lock around hip level. A worker must then check if all the safety bars are securely locked.... After the accident, however, a female worker who is a college student and was working at the time of the incident told police that Kuranouchi's safety bar "appeared to be in the right position" when she just "took a glance" at the device. The worker also reportedly failed to check on the safety bars by hand for the other three passengers in the car the victim was riding in. Furthermore, it was apparently not the first time for the employee -- who has been working on the roller coaster for around 1 1/2 years on a part-time basis -- to neglect her duty. "There were times when I only visually confirmed without touching the safety bars," the worker was quoted as telling investigators.... The victim was reportedly of large build.... http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110131p2a00m0na023000c.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110131003639.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frisbeefan Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 From article referenced above A female university student working part-time who was in charge of checking the safety bars on the Maihime coaster at the time of the accident was quoted as telling the MPD: "I told passengers to lock the safety bars, but I didn't confirm [whether they were in the correct position] with my hand. I thought customers would lock [the bars] by themselves because they're grownups." This is very scary. Luckily no one else has been injured or killed on this particular ride. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 Given the legal system in Japan, I fear for her future. Something tells me she may be in a very great deal of trouble. Especially because it isn't just to see that the patron has locked the safety bar that checking is done, but also to see that it in fact locked. Also, a ride that appears similar to this one, by the same manufacturer, had a similar incident in the USA just last year....also resulting in death, a Maurer Sohne at Dixie Landin'. The Japan coaster can be found here: http://www.rcdb.com/1252.htm?p=2588 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted February 1, 2011 Author Share Posted February 1, 2011 Police Raid Park, INTAMIN JAPAN Headquarters: ...The MPD believes the amusement park may have failed to instruct employees running the rides properly, and raided the headquarters of amusement park operator Tokyo Dome Corp., as well as the offices of Intamin Japan Co. -- which imported the roller coaster from Germany -- on Feb. 1. According to Tokyo Dome Corp. officials, on the day of the accident the amusement park was offering a "stamp rally" service in which visitors can collect stamps at each ride. Kuranouchi's friend has reportedly said they were previously thinking of just getting stamps and going home if they were not allowed to ride the machine because of their size. Furthermore, the aforementioned part-time worker has reportedly explained to investigators that she did not check on Kuranouchi's safety bar by hand on the grounds that the device "appeared to be locked as it was positioned right on his stomach." The MPD believes that if Kuranouchi's safety bar had been securely locked, he would not have fallen off the roller coaster. Investigators also point out that the worker should have forced the victim to get off the roller coaster if it was impossible to lock the device. Meanwhile, the operational manual for the roller coaster does not require workers to confirm by hand whether safety bars are securely locked. The MPD is looking to get a clear picture of how Tokyo Dome Corp. managed its amusement park operations, as it appears increasingly likely that workers regularly neglected proper checks of safety bars on rides. http://mdn.mainichi....0na016000c.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Coastermania Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 scratch that park off of my places to go this summer. I thought computer systems checked for that stuff as well as the check by hand process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted February 1, 2011 Author Share Posted February 1, 2011 Just One Part-Timer In Charge of Fatal Coaster: Only one part-time worker was entrusted with the task of pushing an operation button to start a roller coaster after confirming whether safety bars were properly locked at the time of a fatal accident Sunday, in which a man fell out of a moving ride at a Tokyo amusement park, investigative sources said. The investigators also said the on-site supervisor, a female contracted employee, was in a control room to monitor all the attractions but did not check the roller coaster at the time of the accident. The Metropolitan Police Department on Tuesday searched Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward office of Tokyo Dome, which operates Tokyo Dome City Attractions, and two other sites, including the Suginami Ward office of the firm that imported and sold the roller coaster. Police are investigating the case on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in death.... http://www.yomiuri.c...10201005098.htmSafety Flaws Found In Dome Ride: http://search.japant...20110201x1.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.