San Francisco-Oakland Injury Attorney Comments on Roller Coaster Accidents and Amusement Park Safety

According to the Huffington Post, 10 people have been injured in a roller coaster accident at Knott’s Berry Farm in Orange County. The accident happened Thursday night on a rollercoaster called the Pony Express. The injuries reported were minor, however. A spokesperson for the park stated that a train leaving the station didn’t make it over the first hill and rolled back into another train, and one person who getting into a waiting train and nine people on the train that rolled back were injured. All the victims were taken to the hospital. The cause of the accident is now under investigation.
Roller coasters and amusement rides are usually associated with fun for children, adults, and families. Most people who visit amusement parks and ride roller coasters with suffering an injury; however, each year thousands are injured while on roller coaster or any other amusement park ride. Tragically, in the most extreme situations, some visitors don’t leave an amusement park or water park alive. Most amusement park injuries result from equipment malfunction, but people can also be injured on water rides, water slides, in wave pools, and rides that use inflatable devices. Serious injuries associated with amusement parks can include:
• Deadly Falls – riders can die after being thrown from rides.
• Cartoid Artery Dissection (CAD) and Stroke –A roller coaster’s vigorous jerking of an amusement park rider’s neck can potentially lead to a CAD injury and stroke for the rider.
• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) – Injury to the brain due to the forces and stresses that can be imposed on veins in the riders’ brains. Equipment that become separated during a malfunction ride can strike riders and cause head or brain injuries.
• Drowning – drowning due to negligently supervised amusement park swimming pools.
• Inflatable Ride Injuries
• Lacerations, Broken Bones and Torn Ligaments
• Emotional Injuries and Distress – Sometimes the mental trauma that victims suffer may be greater than any physical harm they suffer, which can require extended, if not lifelong treatment.
As in any business, amusement parks can operate equipment that suddenly malfunctions, equipment such as doors, lap bars, and shoulder harnesses used to restrain riders can malfunction. In addition, employees operating amusement park rides and working at water parks can fail to use a reasonable standard of care on the job. Unfortunately there is no federal law on amusement park safety. If you or a loved one suffered injuries at an amusement park, you may be entitled to compensation. If you think you may have a claim or have questions regarding laws regarding amusement park safety, please call the Brod Law Firm today for a consultation.