A child has fallen from yet another amusement park ride – the third incident of its kind in four days.
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On Thursday afternoon, a 3-year-old boy fell off of a roller coaster at Idlewild & Soak Zone in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.
The child was flown by medical helicopter to the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Eslary said.
Croushore stated that the Idlewild and SoakZone amusement park rides are inspected daily and assured that safety is the park’s number one priority. The department is now investigating the accident, and it will re-examine the inspection history, said Logan D. Hall, spokesman for the department.
To ride on the Rollo Coaster, which opened in 1938, one must be 36 inches tall.
Idlewild requires children to be at least 3 feet (91 cm) tall to ride the roller coaster, and those shorter than 4 feet (122 cm) must be accompanied by an adult. Some witnesses reported that the 10-year-old boy was decapitated.
A study conducted by the Nationwide Children’s Hospital in 2013 found that between 1990 to 2010, there were 92,885 children under 18 years old treated in emergency rooms across the USA for amusement park-related injuries.
The victim was Caleb Schwab and after his death, the slide and the park were closed. He fell from Rollo Coaster, according to a local police dispatcher, but few details have been released and an investigation is underway.
– Avoid “mall rides” if they are over a hard surface or if they don’t have a child restraint such as a seat belt.
“The other two came right behind her”, he said.
Croushore said the boy was at Idlewild with his family.
All theme parks go to great lengths to ensure the safety of their guests, however, at the end of the day it’s up to each parents’ individual discretion to decide whether or not their children should ride roller coasters.
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A spokesman for Idlewild and SoakZone amusement park near Ligonier (lihg-uh-NEER’) says the boy was injured Thursday while riding the attraction with his brother. However, it will remain closed until the investigation is complete.
