What We Do > Amusement Park & Roller Coaster Accidents
Orlando is home to some of the most visited theme parks in the United States, including parks such as Walt Disney World, Universal Studies and Sea World. In the most recent years there have been approximately 600 million visits to amusement and theme parks. Among these visits, there is high number of incidents which have resulted in serious injury and as many as 10 deaths in a single year related to theme park incidents.
Disney World: is located south of Orlando and has seen incidents, including but not limited to:
- A women fractured both legs and an arm while exiting the ride of Peter Pan's Flight
- Multiple riders taken to the hospital for chest pain and nausea after riding Mission: Space
- Death of a woman who died due to a stroke
- Death of a 4-year-old boy due to heart problems
SeaWorld is located north of Walt Disney World and south of Orlando and has seen incidents including but not limited to:
- A little boy suffered a bruised arm after a dolphin bit him
- A woman broke her arm while riding the "Journey to Atlantis" ride
- A man broke his wrist on the crawl net at Shamu's Happy Harbor
Universal Studios Florida is located in Orlando and has seen incidents including but not limited to:
- An actress injured her foot when it became caught in a lift mechanism
- A 39-year-old man died after falling from the loading platform at the studio's Revenge of the Mummy Ride
- A young girl broke her arm on the Camp Jurassic climbing nets
- A man suffered chest pain while riding Revenge of the Mummy
The Consumer Protection Safety Commission estimates that the number of serious injuries on amusement park rides warranting a trip to the emergency room have risen to almost 5,000 annually. Unfortunately, the CPSC's ability to gather accurate information is seriously hampered by the loophole in the Consumer Product Safety Act in 1981 -- the so-called "roller coaster loophole." This loophole prohibits the CPSC from regulating the safety of rides that are fixed to a specific site. While mobile rides, those that move from location to location - such as in carnivals and other mobile attractions - fall under their jurisdiction. Although legislation regarding amusement park rides has been introduced in Congress, it has failed to become law.
As a result, regulation and inspection of "fixed site" amusement rides are left up to the state or local municipality, and as a result, oversight varies from good to none. A majority of states and municipalities provide some type of regulation (i.e., licensing, inspection, insurance requirements); the states containing the largest number of amusement parks (i.e., California, Florida, Ohio) do have some oversight. However, consumers have no way of finding out how many guests have been seriously injured on rides at parks such as Disney World and Universal Studios Florida.
Florida's largest amusement parks, including Walt Disney World, are exempt from state regulations that require mandatory reporting of injuries and give the state authority to shut down and inspect rides. Disney voluntarily submits to safety inspections.
CPSC has stated that several factors are at fault in the amusement park accidents: consumer behavior, operator behavior, mechanical failure and design defects or limitations.
If an amusement park's negligence leads to an accident - whether it be a roller coaster accident or a slip and fall accident - the people injured in those accidents may be entitled to compensation from the amusement park owners.
Common injuries to visitors of theme parks include:
- Injuries requiring surgery, sutures and staples
- Slip and falls
- Animal bites and attacks
- Concussions
- Whiplash / back injuries
- Broken bones
- Internal Injuries
- Traumatic brain injury
- Oxygen deprivation
- Severe burns resulting in significant and permanent scarring
- Mental anguish and emotion distress
- Operator Negligence, such as an operator who is drunk, impaired or otherwise under the influence of narcotics or drugs
- Defective Equipment causing injury
- Death
If your loved one has been injured or died from an amusement park ride there is a legal deadline for filing these lawsuits, so call NOW toll free 1-888-888-3773. The consultation and call are FREE.