Speculation and media beat ups - Thunder River Rapids incident

[Harold]

5 minutes ago, AllegroCrab said:

The emergency stop button isn't going to stop the raft from coming through the water, it'd just stop the lift wouldn't it?

I still can't think of how this happened, did the raft slide down the conveyor lift?

http://imgur.com/a/fnOUt

[AllegroCrab]

OK thanks guys that makes more sense now.

Seriously, fuck the media. It's things like this that make me question every article I've read in the past. It seems every time a news story pops up in an area I actually have knowledge about, it's filled with bullshit misguided speculation presented as facts, and presented in a vitriolic way that attacks the entire industry.

It's the same as the way the media reports on soccer fans, although in those cases I usually just brush it off. In this case I am actually shocked, I think it's completely disrespectful to everybody who is closely involved with this incident.

[bladex]

4 minutes ago, grrofunger said:

Is the directional arrow on the belt in the photo in that article pointing in the wrong direction?

you can see it explained better in this article

[grrofunger]

Just now, bladex said:

you can see it explained better in this article

thought that was the case, thanks

[jake_hunt]

I'm particularly upset about them playing the blame game at Dreamworld and even the other parks. Claiming that all the rides there are unsafe, and the RHLR incident was somehow related. Some even managed to weave in the Storm Coaster stall a couple weeks back.

What people don't seem to realise is that people, real people, were working at the rapids when this happened, and I'm sure they are just as deeply upset as anyone.

[razza1987]

2 hours ago, AlexB said:

I'd say my source, knowing the people, is pretty reliable, whereas in the heat of an emergency, emergency services workers need to estimate. I know nothing else about their age except what my friend told me, but they could be 28-29ish, which is reasonably easy to confuse with 'about 32' for an unconscious patient without a person nearby who knows them that can tell them. Potentially their ID is on the bottom of the holding lake. 

Whether or not their age is correct, LK will be revealed eventually.

depends on how you class 'safety incident' - the buzzsaw restraint system could be classed as one. The tiger attacks could be others.

What does LK stand for? 

1 hour ago, Hiisi25 said:

Oh please they demand to be always in the limelight, even when the issue was settled and the person convicted... They STILL insist on riding on the coattails of the death of their kid for a continuing public profile. Mind you, the kid would have been still alive if they were never neglectful parents in the first place and not let a young child hang by the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. They are much to blame for the kids death as is the person that committed the crime. 

Wtf are you even talking about???

[bladex]

the park won't get shut down (prob not) but i think we've seen the last of poor TRRR...

Edited October 25, 2016 by bladex

[Flynn_Smith]

1 minute ago, bladex said:

the park won't get shut down (prob not) but i think we've seen the last of poor TRRR...

I completely agree, that ride will be taken down and probably never return. 

[JeffreyMoore]

4 minutes ago, bladex said:

the park won't get shut down (prob not) but i think we've seen the last of poor TRRR...

 

2 minutes ago, ClassifiedLlama said:

I completely agree, that ride will be taken down and probably never return. 

And as much as i love the ride i dont know if i whould ever feel right rideing it again if you get what i mean 

[Flynn_Smith]

Just now, JeffreyMoore said:

 

And as much as i love the ride i dont know if i whould ever feel right rideing it again if you get what i mean 

Who would?

I just wouldnt feel safe.

[JeffreyMoore]

Just now, ClassifiedLlama said:

Who would?

I just wouldnt feel safe.

That and just knowing what took place 

[Jamberoo Fan]

Regarding the Intamin or not issue, I think Thunder River Rapids was built in-house while Intamin has helped with improvements & maintenance of the ride since then such as installing a computer, providing new rafts & spare parts and manuals so the ride can work in conjunction with these new features. Simply, judging from the information I read so far, I think Intamin is involved with the ride but they were not involved in any way back in 1986 and they might be using that fact to distance themselves from it. In the end, time will tell - there will be a huge investigation after all.

@AllegroCrab, I was looking at old newspaper articles from the Sydney Morning Herald when Luna Park Sydney's Ghost Train caught on fire. It mentioned briefly (without sensationalising) at the end of one of the articles that the Big Dipper crashed and injured 13 people 2 months prior (similar to The Smiler incident but injuries were not as bad & the cause was different) but there was no sensationalised reporting in the rest of that day's newspaper or in the days afterwards.

Just compare that with the articles I've posted - 1 serious rollercoaster crash from 1979 2 months prior at the same park vs lists of endless minor incidents (most reported incorrectly) spanning 15 years from multiple parks that are owned by separate companies!

The media reports I've posted just show how desperate the media are in trying to remain relevant in today's society where there are more informed (like Parkz) and quicker (like Facebook) sources of information. The 24 hour news cycle (which started in 1980 - 1 year after the Ghost Train fire - with the introduction of CNN), to the media, requires new news instantly as a means of getting viewers/readers (by being 'first!') and in turn, revenue. Not surprisingly, this leads to lower journalistic integrity. It just shows how different the world is between 1979 & 2016.

Edited October 25, 2016 by Jamberoo Fan

[Themeparkfan]

Looks like the rafts were fabricated and built in Australia http://www.masterglass.com.au/project/theme-parks/

[www worker 2.0]

Apparently merlin have closed all there rapid rides in the UK following this incident.

Just now, Jamberoo Fan said:

Regarding the Intamin or not issue, I think the original ride was built in-house while Intamin has helped with improvements and maintenance of the ride since then such as installing a computer, providing new rafts & spare parts and manuals so the ride can work in conjunction with these new features. Simply, judging from the information I read so far, I think Intamin is involved with the ride but they were not involved in any way back in 1986 and they might be using that fact to distance themselves from it. In the end, time will tell - there will be a huge investigation after all.

 

 

I believe that to be the case.

[Flynn_Smith]

2 minutes ago, www worker 2.0 said:

Apparently merlin have closed all there rapid rides in the UK following this incident.

Im not suprised

[Reanimated35]

Just now, ClassifiedLlama said:

Who would?

I just wouldnt feel safe.

I would ride it. 

I've ridden Green Lantern, Rocky Hollow, Colossus, Goliath, Ninja, Scream, California Screamin', Indiana Jones, It's a small world, Matterhorn, Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin.

I want to ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad & Smiler.

There's a certain level of danger you accept with these things. It's not likely, but it's a possibility. 

[jake_hunt]

@www worker 2.0 Probably for safety inspection purposes. No park ever wants something like this to happen there, but the only possible thing that could be worse is something horrible happening when they had warning.

@Jamberoo Fan I agree totally, and I'm sick of it. It was bad enough when they sensationalised non-event evacuations, but now that something real has happened, it's gone to whole new levels. It's hard to know what to believe any more, because any slight speculation or rumour will become news, and if there's no speculation, they'll make something up.

[Flynn_Smith]

1 minute ago, reanimated35 said:

I would ride it. 

I've ridden Green Lantern, Rocky Hollow, Colossus, Goliath, Ninja, Scream, California Screamin', Indiana Jones, It's a small world, Matterhorn, Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin.

I want to ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad & Smiler.

There's a certain level of danger you accept with these things. It's not likely, but it's a possibility. 

True true, but im more referring to this ride in particular. im fine to go on those rides you listed, even after the evens that have happened to them. Although this ride has just killed 4 people and that strikes my heart because its a family ride, an extremely tame ride.

[Theme Park Girl]

Names of three of the victims have now been released. 

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/dreamworld-deaths-children-watch-mum-and-friends-die-in-ride-accident/news-story/20be2cff92f55e85d603f04864882450

[Flynn_Smith]

5 minutes ago, Theme Park Girl said:

Names of three of the victims have now been released. 

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/dreamworld-deaths-children-watch-mum-and-friends-die-in-ride-accident/news-story/20be2cff92f55e85d603f04864882450

So tragic, just tragic

[Reanimated35]

1 minute ago, ClassifiedLlama said:

True true, but im more referring to this ride in particular. im fine to go on those rides you listed, even after the evens that have happened to them. Although this ride has just killed 4 people and that strikes my heart because its a family ride, an extremely tame ride.

Completely understand, and I probably come across as insensitive, so I apologise, I've seen enough photos and video to be desensitised to this stuff sadly. There's risk in everything and every form of entertainment. 

People (not you, just going off on a tangent here) calling for the park to close and IMO stupid idiots. They're probably the same people who happily smoke themselves to death. You'd think you're pretty safe going to watch a live motor race, right? If you read the fine print of the ticket (or at least as of around 5 years ago when I last went) they warn you that as a spectator, there's a risk of death by attending the event. 

IMO, it's going to take a lot for it to happen, but I think the park will bounce back from this. It's possible the ride will re-open with a few new safety features. Whether that be physical additions to the ride, a new PLC, or something else entirely is yet to be seen. There's the possibility the ride will close forever and Gold Rush will be removed and rethemed to something else. Who knows. 

^ Most of that probably isn't relevant to much, but it's my thoughts anyway. 

[JeffreyMoore]

8 minutes ago, Theme Park Girl said:

Names of three of the victims have now been released. 

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/dreamworld-deaths-children-watch-mum-and-friends-die-in-ride-accident/news-story/20be2cff92f55e85d603f04864882450

Have you had the hart to look at the pics - know you were a little unsettled at the thort of what had come of the poor victums earlyer 

[jake_hunt]

I'd rather Gold Rush remain, but I can certainly understand the rapids closing.

I would hope that Dreamworld are able to consider the future of the ride carefully. If it's for the best, it's for the best, especially given the tragic circumstances, but it's a classic family ride and would be sorely missed. No matter what, its reputation, and the park's, will always be marred by this unfortunately.

[elemist]

2 minutes ago, reanimated35 said:

Completely understand, and I probably come across as insensitive, so I apologise, I've seen enough photos and video to be desensitised to this stuff sadly. There's risk in everything and every form of entertainment. 

People (not you, just going off on a tangent here) calling for the park to close and IMO stupid idiots. They're probably the same people who happily smoke themselves to death. You'd think you're pretty safe going to watch a live motor race, right? If you read the fine print of the ticket (or at least as of around 5 years ago when I last went) they warn you that as a spectator, there's a risk of death by attending the event. 

IMO, it's going to take a lot for it to happen, but I think the park will bounce back from this. It's possible the ride will re-open with a few new safety features. Whether that be physical additions to the ride, a new PLC, or something else entirely is yet to be seen. There's the possibility the ride will close forever and Gold Rush will be removed and rethemed to something else. Who knows. 

^ Most of that probably isn't relevant to much, but it's my thoughts anyway. 

I'm sure the park will recover eventually. The rides fate i thing will very much depend on the cause of the incident. If the park / ride is found at fault then there's a good chance it will be removed. Especially if it's going to require any kind of major funding to improve/rectify the issues.

If it's deemed the incident was caused by the riders then the only reason to close the ride would be either out of respect, or if any safety improvements are required that are excessively expensive.

[jake_hunt]

http://www.news.com.au/national/queensland/dreamworld-fan-slams-park-for-selling-photographs-after-tragic-deaths/news-story/0079cfcdf3dc69aa0cf03707334eed47

By the way, now they're blaming the velcro straps. Which is ridiculous, since the ride functioned without them for years, and the accident would not have been prevented with bigger restraints. What do they want, shoulder bars?