The Interpreter Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 One Died, three seriously injured: ...According to witness reports, one of the attractions "went crazy" and started spinning out of control. Because of the speed, the four victims were violently thrown out the machine. According to newspaper El Tiempo, there was nobody in charge of the machine at the time of the accident. Local newspaper El Colombiano reported that after the accident there was no personnel to attend the crisis situation and parents were carrying their own children to taxis outside the park, because no ambulances were called to the place of the accident. Medellin police commissioner Yesid Vasquez told press that the person in charge of the machine had "asked one of his colleagues to take his place" just before the accident and said authorities were carrying out an investigation. In a press statement on its website, Parque Norte said its attractions are checked daily before opening the gates and that its employees are trained to provide good service. http://colombiarepor...ement-park.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FOFreak Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 Wow this is a very tragic story, It just shows how much responsibility a ride-op really has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastersRZ Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 But also what is shocking is that the place didn`t have any kind of first aid staff on property. Definitely seems like lawsuits are waiting to be filed in this one, as someone certainly seems negligent. Hopefully the three that are seriously injured make a quick and full recovery. I also wonder, if the ride shown is in fact the one that had the incident, how kids could be violently thrown from it. It doesn`t seem like the type of ride to produce lateral forces that would want to force people out of the ride. And the other question is, who actually started the ride? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted February 27, 2011 Author Share Posted February 27, 2011 Just speculating, but perhaps the substitute ride op started the ride, then ran away when the incident occurred? Just a thought... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markr Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 That reminds me of a time my friend and I were at the Ohio State Fair back in 1988. We were riding the paratrooper ride ( I call it the spinning umbrellas). The ride always spins real fast. To our chagrin, we noticed that the operator had left his post in the middle of the ride. I cannot remember how long he was gone but eventually he returned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
windshawne Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 Just speculating, but perhaps the substitute ride op started the ride, then ran away when the incident occurred? Just a thought... Very possible. No way would I be a ride op. Mark, what did you do when the guy returned? I think I would have had a long talk with management on that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldiesmann Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 From the same site... Authorities close two Medellin amusement parks to review safety conditions and maintenance after an accident in Parque Norte killed a little girl, El Tiempo reported Monday. On Saturday the Emergency Brigade ride filled with children "went crazy" and spun out of control ejecting four kids, and killing 5-year-old Juliana Jaramillo Gomez. The Medellin Mayor's Office closed Parque Norte and Juan Pablo II Monday to review safety measures at the parks. According Mayor Alonso Salazar, a thorough investigation of the tragedy will be conducted to ensure the safety of the park-goers. A psychological support team was assigned by the Mayor's Office to help the families of the victims. In addition, it is reported that the city will take on all medical and funeral expenses of the victims. Five-year-old Juliana Jaramillo Gomez was laid to rest Monday in a cemetery in Medellin. http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/14645-medellin-amusement-parks-closed-after-girl-dies-in-accident.html Glad to see the fast response from the city on this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browntggrr Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 While the lack of an operator is the most serious issue here, I have to ask, were the safety devices disabled? I don't work on amusement rides, but, I do work on automated machinery. On most of our machines, we have a "load monitor" which will fault out the machine if there is too much/ not enough load on the servo(s). While I have no idea if this particular ride has the same type of safety system, I do find it hard to accept that it wouldn't- along with numerous other safety features (i.e. interlocks for chains on entry/ exits for the ride car itself, interlocks for safety bars etc.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KIfan1980 Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 The requirements of a safety system vary greatly from country to country. If not required by local laws, safety devices are often removed to reduce downtime and maintenance costs. Edit - this was an opinion and not an endorsement of doing so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browntggrr Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 It is true that requirements do vary, but, that does not excuse the disabling of safety devices. I have a difficult time accepting that a ride manufacturer will not include a safety device because a particular ride is being sold to a country (state etc.) that does not monitor ride safety. If the park removed a safety device due to a maintenance reason, they are negligent. If the manufacturer did not include a safety device due to who bought the ride, they are even more negligent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KIfan1980 Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Please don't take my comment as an endorsement of ever disabling, removing, or not installing a safety device. I was merely pointing out what I believe to be an unfortunate truth and agree with your assessment that doing so is negligent. I believe Safety should be the highest priority. To illustrate a point and laugh at myself a little - I'll admit to being that guy in the neighborhood wearing safety glasses and hearing protection when mowing the lawn. After all, looking good isn't important enough to get hurt over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted March 2, 2011 Author Share Posted March 2, 2011 I always were safety glasses to mow...but never ear protection....then again, I ONLY use electric mowers! I cannot stand that noise from a gasoline one... That being said, the legal environment in other countries is very different from the USA. What is considered negligent here may be considered doing good business in some countries. In other countries, safety standards in some ways may be far more stringent than in the US (see, especially, roller coasters and Japan...where at least some parks do not allow those over 49 years of age to ride) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browntggrr Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Please don't take my comment as an endorsement of ever disabling, removing, or not installing a safety device. I was merely pointing out what I believe to be an unfortunate truth and agree with your assessment that doing so is negligent. I did not take your comments like that at all. It just frustrates me when businesses use excuses like that to promote something else- in this case a operating ride vs. a ride that is down. Or when people (I am not pointing fingers at anyone in particular) do not understand why certain precautions are followed and voice an uneducated opinion. Some years ago, I was present for a workplace fatality- so I am a bit sensitive on the subject. All the safety procedures for that machine were followed (i.e. lock out/ tag out, zero energy etc.), but, there was stored hydraulic energy that was not released. The common statement "we have done this 1000 times" was used, but the result was still catastrophic. While we learn from mistakes like that, I firmly believe every accident is preventable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGuy4KI Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Please don't take my comment as an endorsement of ever disabling, removing, or not installing a safety device. I was merely pointing out what I believe to be an unfortunate truth and agree with your assessment that doing so is negligent. While we learn from mistakes like that, I firmly believe every accident is preventable. I agree, but we often learn the lesson to late! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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