BOY, 4, DIES AFTER RIDING EPCOT ATTRACTION
A 4-year-old boy died after a spin on a Walt Disney World spaceship ride so intense that it has motion sickness bags and several riders have been treated for chest pain.
Ref. https://www.cnn.com/2005/US/06/14/disney.death.ap/index.html
I do feel deep sorrow for the parents of this young boy. What a terrible thing it must be to lose a child, so young at that. However, how can this be blamed on Disney? There are plenty of warnings before you get on rides at theme parks, and after all, millions of people have ridden this ride before. This must have been a crazy coincidence, and the child may not have been as healthy and able to ride the ride to begin with.
Offtopic but, The article also mentions a older woman who passed away shortly after riding "Pirates of the Caribbean" which Disney has since closed. C'mon... has anyone else ridden "Pirates of the Caribbean"? That ride was not rough by any means and still... that ride had the same safety warnings. How can you blame the park for something that is going on within your own body? Again folks... I always say this, but why don't people take personal ownership of the issues in their life? |
For those interested in death at Disney, have a look at this page on the Urban Legends website.
Urban Legends - Disney Theme Park Deaths
These are corroborated stories, not rumours or urban legends (there are plenty of those too). Unfortunately, it hasn't been updated since September 2003, so the two recent cases mentioned in the previous posts aren't included.
I don't think Disney World should be held responsible for most of those deaths because many from the list given by mikejonesak have happened because of foolish bravery attempts. As for the little boy and the older woman, they should not have gone on the rides in the first place, and there probably were several warnings cautioning them.
I asked Barbara Mikkelson, who runs the Urban Legend website with her husband, why the list doesn't include the two deaths mentioned in the CNN news report.
This was her reply:
"Our page chronicles guest deaths that have occurred at Disneyland due
to attraction-related accidents or malfunctions. The incidents you
cite did not take place at Disneyland, nor did they involve any sort
of accident or malfunction."
The two CNN deaths were of natural causes (if you can call spinning "in a giant centrifuge that subjects riders to twice the normal force of gravity" natural) and they occurred at Disney World, but I'm not sure why they only list Disneyland deaths.
Offtopic but, I can thoroughly recommend the the Urban Legend site to anyone interested in getting to the truth behind those stories we hear and emails. |
Message Edited! Persephone: Removed extra external site promotion. Please read the thread in the FAQ Board about 'Posting to External Sites' |
I agree that they shouldn't have been going on in the first place. Though through simple physics the strain some high speed rides put on your body, as in the g-forces at work can harm you mentally and physically. Even just rapid flashing of some haunted house rides can trigger seizures and other such affects. Disorientation may possibly be a factor.
As far as if Disney World should be held responsible, one must check the factors. If it had been the ride, no previous health problems, unquestionable medical past, or other health problems related to the stay at Disney. Then yes they are responsible. It is a grievous loss, to have one die in the throng of something meant to be fun, entertainment.
Edited: Fossi on 17th Jun, 2005 - 7:27pm
If Disney keeps getting these accidents and deaths on their hands (even if it is not their fault) they are eventually going to be the subject of many lawsuits or even closing down many of the more 'dangerous' rides.
Cause of Girl's Death at Disney Sought
AP - Medical examiners tried to determine Friday why a 12-year-old girl died after collapsing at a wave pool in a Walt Disney World water park - the third time in two months a child has died or become critically ill at the resort.
Ref. https://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...ney_world_death