55. AMUSEMENT PARK RIDES

Apocalypse, Banshee, Blazing Fury, Thunderbolt, Pandemonium, California Screamin’, Invertigo, Mind Eraser, Exterminator, Coastersaurus: these are not your grandma’s merry-go-rounds. Are these dire-sounding contraptions harmless fun or death traps? All amusement park rides, whether a roller coaster, a drop ride, a Ferris wheel, or a water slide, are designed to entertain and excite. When you get on a ride, you should only feel like you’re going to die—you shouldn’t actually be in peril. And, fortunately, ride design and safety have come a long way since the early days of roller coasters when cars sometimes flew off their tracks or failed to stop. But rides have become bigger and faster over the years, while at the same time amusement park attendance has skyrocketed. With approximately 335 million visits each year to amusement parks in the United States, the thrill business is soaring.

Keeping an amusement park ride safe requires careful maintenance to protect against electrical, mechanical, and weather-related issues that may affect safety. The costs of inspections, maintenance, and repairs to a ride are far less than the costs of bad publicity and lawsuits following an injury or death at a park. But this is really the strongest incentive that parks have to make sure their facilities are safe. It may surprise you to learn that safety regulations for amusement rides in the United States are inconsistent and largely voluntary. Although the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) regulates food, clothing, and prizes sold on site, it has no authority or jurisdiction over the safety of rides that are permanently fixed to a site within an amusement park or water park. There is more federal oversight on a stuffed animal or a T-shirt sold at the park than there is over the roller coaster that goes 100 miles per hour. Instead of federal officials, local or state authorities create their own regulations for fixed-site rides. Amusement park operators can also choose to follow their own policies or voluntary standards such as those detailed in ASTM F24 Committee on Amusement Rides and Devices. The ASTM F24 committee works with the amusement park industry and other organizations, such as the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, to create standards for ride safety. Currently 34 of 50 states in the U.S. reference ASTM F24 standards in state regulations.

A comparison of state ride safety regulations reveals inconsistent requirements for inspections, oversight boards, insurance, accident reporting, and accident investigations. For example, only 12 states have a ride safety advisory board, and only nine states require that ride operators must be at least 18 years old. A total of 13 states do not require that rides be registered, and seven states do not require that rides are insured. Some states require that ride owners must report accidents that cause severe injury or death or a visit to the emergency room or doctor, but other states do not compel ride owners to report any accidents. When accidents do occur, only 26 states require that owners preserve the accident scene for an investigation. Presumably, in those states without such a requirement, an accident scene can be cleaned up and the ride be put back in action without an investigation into the cause.

And accidents do happen. In August 2016, the National Safety Council issued a report for the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions that estimated the number of injuries on fixed-site amusement park rides in the United States that occurred between 2003 and 2015. Based on ridership data from a limited number of amusement parks, the National Safety Council reported 1,508 injuries (0.8 injuries per million patron-rides) in 2015. Of these 1,508 injuries, the majority (63%) occurred on family and adult rides, while 29% occurred on roller coasters and 8% on children’s rides. Of those injuries, 5.5% were serious enough to require a hospital stay longer than 24 hours. The Amusement Safety Organization has compiled data on the areas of the body that were injured and the names of the amusement parks and rides causing the injuries in accidents. They report substantially more significant injuries than the National Safety Council, although the source of these data is unclear. Of course, if injuries incurred on rides that move from place to place, such as in carnivals and fairs, are included in the count, the numbers are larger. For example, the examination of U.S. hospital emergency department records from 1990 to 2010 revealed that an estimated 92,885 children (17 years old or younger) sought treatment for injuries involving amusement rides.

Accidents on amusement park rides can be the result of many factors. Some accidents are caused by problems with the ride itself (brake failure, abrupt stops, collisions, malfunctions, defective or worn parts) or by operator error. Other accidents may be attributed to rider negligence or inattention, such as standing up on a ride, unlocking a safety restraint, or failing to keep hands and arms inside a ride. The design of some rides, especially roller coasters that generate high speed and high gravitational force, may contribute to head, back, and neck injuries. Regardless of the cause, amusement park accidents can be catastrophic. In fact, the CPSC reported that between 1987 and 2004, 46 people were killed by fixed-site rides, and 13 people were killed by mobile rides (the sites of rides causing 8 additional deaths were unknown).

The easiest way to reduce the chance of an injury on an amusement park ride is to follow the rules. These rules are designed to keep riders safe, so when you are told not to stand up, don’t stand up. If a person does not meet the age, height, and weight requirements of a ride, do not let that person on the ride. Many rides list warnings in the boarding areas, but riders should be aware of their own health conditions that may increase their risk of injury. For example, people who have preexisting neck, back, or heart problems, high blood pressure, or who are pregnant, should probably avoid high-speed rides with rapid twists, turns, and sudden stops. You can observe a ride prior to boarding to get an idea what to expect.

Although the likelihood of an injury or death on a trip to the amusement park is low, following the rules and knowing your limitations will further reduce risk and maximize the thrills instead of the spills.

SUMMARY

Preventability (97)

Injuries caused by amusement parks rides are almost 100% avoidable: just don’t ride them. However, some people make amusement parks into destination vacations and feel compelled to experience all of the thrills these places have to offer.

Likelihood (2)

The likelihood of suffering an injury on an amusement park ride is very low.

Consequence (67)

Bumps and bruises are much more common than catastrophic injuries.

REFERENCES

ASTM International (n.d.). Committee F24 on Amusement Rides and Devices. Retrieved from https://www.astm.org/COMMITTEE/F24.htm

Braksiek, R. J., & Roberts, D. J. (2002). Amusement park injuries and deaths. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 39, 65–72.

CPSC. (n.d.). Consumer Product Safety Act. Retrieved from https://www.cpsc.gov/Regulations-Laws--Standards/Statutes/Summary-List/Consumer-Product-Safet-Act

Saferparks. (2017, April). U.S. federal and state amusement ride regulation. Retrieved from http://www.saferparks.org/regulation/agencies

Saferparks. (2018). Safety regulations for U.S. amusement rides. Retrieved from http://www.saferparks.org/regulation

Thompson, M. C., Chounthirath, T., Xiang, H., & Smith, G. A. (2013). US pediatric injuries involving amusement rides, 1990–2010. Clinical Pediatrics, 52, 433–440.