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Two Injured in Incident at California's Great America

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. (KGO) --
Two people were injured, one seriously, in a roller-coaster accident at California's Great America amusement park in Santa Clara on Friday night.

A park employee was hospitalized for traumatic injuries after being struck by a train returning to the station of the Flight Deck coaster, park officials said in a statement.

Witnesses say the park employee stepped into the path of the roller coaster while trying to retrieve a rider's cellphone.

A guest riding the roller coaster at the time reported a hand injury and was taken to a hospital for evaluation. Further details about the accident and the injuries were not immediately available.

The roller coaster will remain closed until the investigation is complete. Park officials said there was no reason to believe the ride malfunctioned, but that they are working closely with local and state authorities.

"It was the maintenance guy, he was trying to get something from the floor, I think somebody dropped a cellphone and then when we were turning to the right, I saw the maintenance guy getting hit by front of the first line of the Flight Deck. He got dragged almost like 10 to 15 feet from the entrance almost to the exit," Gustavo Ceja said.

"That's horrible and I'm so sorry for their families, that's tragic," Kara Underwood said.

"It makes me not want to ride the roller coaster, it really does," one man said.

Great America management released a statement saying: Safety is at the heart of everything we do and remains our highest priority. We are working closely with local and state authorities to investigate this matter."

In 1998, there was another accident on the same roller coaster which used to be called Top Gun.

Renato Robles was killed when he climbed over a security fence to get his wife's hat and was kicked in the head by a rider.

Friday's accident occurred the same day a 10-year-old girl was airlifted to a hospital when she was found unconscious after riding a roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Southern California.

The girl and a parent were transported by helicopter Friday afternoon, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said. There was no word Saturday on her condition or whether it's related to the ride.

The girl was found breathing but unconscious after riding the Revolution, according to a statement from the amusement park in Valencia.

The 113-foot high looping steel coaster reaches speeds of 55 mph during a two-minute ride. The Revolution was cleared to reopen shortly after the incident, Six Flags Magic Mountain spokeswoman Sue Carpenter said.

On the East Coast, authorities said three children suffered minor injuries after an accident involving a carnival roller coaster ride in Waterville, Maine.

The children were among numerous carnival-goers on the "Dragon Wagon" ride when it came apart Friday evening, New England Cable News reported. One of the young victims was taken to a hospital.

The cause of Friday's accident remains under investigation.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

http://abc7news.com/news/roller-coaster ... ca/781565/


My prayers go out to the families of those affected.


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Wow that blows. He should have left the cellphone there and have him come back after park hours to have it retrieved like we did at a now defunct theme park. I hope the guy fully recovers and quickly :(

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It's their fault. This is really similar to the boy who got decapitated at SFoG when he jumped the fence to get his hat and got hit by Batman.
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What dumbass employee went into a low zone with trains running, and what dumbass ride supervisor/team leader/both of them allowed it?
"Careful man, there's a beverage here!"


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When I worked in construction one thing they would always say is..

Don't get too comfortable with machinery(like a roller coaster), that's when accidents happen.

and it sounds like that is exactly what happened.
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TTD03 wrote:
It's been a bad month for coasters....

This isn't the ride's fault at all. While the Smiler's accident is a bit more ride-oriented than this one, this accident is purely the result of the people.
Coasterkidmwm wrote:
gouldy wrote:
Just don't employ stupid people and you're golden.

That's like finding a Waffle House with no white trash in it.

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Paradox wrote:
TTD03 wrote:
It's been a bad month for coasters....

This isn't the ride's fault at all. While the Smiler's accident is a bit more ride-oriented than this one, this accident is purely the result of the people.

No I know, but I mean publicity wise. People will always blame the ride.


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^Well said, the GP won't stop talking about this month
It's been a long time
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LuckyK wrote:
rides don't kill people. People kill people.


Not entirely true, some of the worst ride accidents are purely mechanical and had little to nothing to do with operator neglect. Fujin Rajin, mindbender (galaxyland), Ninja (sfmm), Big Dipper (battersea fun fair). The last one is probably the most famous coaster accident as it set the standard for modern wooden coaster safety. So, while MOST accidents are due to incompetent or neglectful park employees, and guests, let's not forget that there are risks in riding amusement park rides. Not all scenarios can be tested or forseen. ( Italian model Fabio's broken nose while riding Apollo's Chariot at BGW).
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spacemountainfan619 wrote:
LuckyK wrote:
rides don't kill people. People kill people.


Not entirely true, some of the worst ride accidents are purely mechanical and had little to nothing to do with operator neglect. Fujin Rajin, mindbender (galaxyland), Ninja (sfmm), Big Dipper (battersea fun fair). The last one is probably the most famous coaster accident as it set the standard for modern wooden coaster safety. So, while MOST accidents are due to incompetent or neglectful park employees, and guests, let's not forget that there are risks in riding amusement park rides. Not all scenarios can be tested or forseen. ( Italian model Fabio's broken nose while riding Apollo's Chariot at BGW).


Image


Anyway... i don't understand where this happened on the ride. dragged 15ft. from the entrance to the exit? do they mean it happened in the station or brakerun?


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LuckyK wrote:
rides don't kill people. People kill people.


You can also say "People may kill rides by asking for removal!" For instance, some shocking or pathetic messages we saw during the conversation of Smiler's Accident. :(
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^^Mindbender for example was purely mechanical. Not all accidents are caused by people, though the majority are. The mechanical accidents are freak accidents that happen once in a blue moon, but the human-error based accidents are more common
It's been a long time
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