I was in the Festhaus when I heard the (now infamous) strike. Loudest strike I've ever heard, seemed to be drawn out too. Nature truly is amazing.

I'm glad that nobody was injured during the storms.

It sounded rather violent.

Did the park alert guests to seek shelter?

Just to add to your question, I know that it has been mentioned before, I just forget where.

Being in the midwest, I wonder if Kings Island has organized procedures, as well as multiple shelters in the event of a tornado. I did see a video of people hiding in the basement under Action Theater during a tornado warning, but does the park have any other practical shelters solely for this purpose?

I'm not sure what KI's procedures are because i have never been at KI during a tornado, but i was at Cedar Point during one and i was inline for Disaster Transport. They had us go into the other part of the building where the que line is where the working props were at. We couldn't leave no matter what till they gave us the all clear. I know that the BLSC has a tornado shelter in the steel buildings they have around the ride. Seen the signs.

The big steel building in Rivertown is a tornado shelter

Well realistically, could you use the Kings Island Theater? Or the big steel building by Invertigo? (That's offices, correct?)

Every ride, has a general area that they need to go to if they need to go to a Tornado Shelter. For example, if you are at Diamondback and need to get to a Tornado Shelter, you'd go below the station

Ok, thanks guys. I've always wanted to know.

There's also one in the rides/maintenance shop behind Surf Dog.

When the hellavator got struck by lighting in the summer of 2006 at Kentucky Kingdom, the ride had multiple electrical problems. That ride was close for several weeks.

FYI, Drop Tower was running again today.

Ran all day Saturday 5/12 as far as I could see as well. Seems to have been cleared for normal operation.

WindSeeker wasn't open yesterday when I went. So unreliable.

Adding to the list of tornado structures, underneath WWC's turntable is another one.

There is so much power in a lightening strike that regardless of whether or not there are lightening rods on top or not, there will be issues electrically afterwards. The point of lightening rods is to give a path of least resistance for electric to flow from the top of a structure to the bottom. That being said, stray electricity will still flow throughout the structure, just not nearly as much as without them.

WindSeeker was not struck by lightening.

WindSeeker wasn't open yesterday when I went. So unreliable.

There is a very good reason it was closed. It will be open soon, and better than last year.

...better than last year?

Will it spin backwards too?

Cobra, who thinks that'd be kinda cool....

More reliability, less downtime.

^ Don't you mean downtown?

Or has that joke finally been sent to The Crypt?

WindSeeker wasn't open yesterday when I went. So unreliable.

There is a very good reason it was closed. It will be open soon, and better than last year.

Since I've been a little out of it lately, I'll ask - did I miss an announcement or any communication about this or has the ride just been closed?

Assuming its just been closed, this is an area that I wish KI would improve upon. How hard would it be to share via tweet, website, blog, or newsletter a quick mention of what's up and when it's expected to open.

I, for one, figured the downtown thing left with the nickel king, perhaps the downtown having been done in the Crypt.

As for WindSeeker, it hasn't opened yet this year. When it does, it will have more in common with the others than it did before now.

What exactly did our model have that the others did? I know about the shock absorbers on each arm, but that is about the extent of the changes I know of.

I would not want to go in one of those tin shacks (FOF building/Crypt building) a tornado would rip one of those buildings to shreds.

I would not want to go in one of those tin shacks (FOF building/Crypt building) a tornado would rip one of those buildings to shreds.

The Crypt's ride chamber, maybe, but I think that the bunker-style cave entrance and queue would actually offer adequate protection. That is, if the antechamber holds up.

So will WindSeeker

lol