Rider's Feet Severed on Amusement Park Ride

[COTSBOE]

Girls Feet Severed on Thrill Ride at Theme Park

(CNN) -- A girl's feet were cut off Thursday when a free-fall thrill ride malfunctioned at the Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom Amusement Park in Louisville, Kentucky, police said.

A cord wrapped around the 16-year-old's feet and severed them at her ankles while she was on the "Superman Tower of Power," a police dispatcher said. The girl was taken to a local hospital.

An unidentified witness told CNN affiliate WLKY she saw a cable on the ride snap.

"The people on the ride just came and hit the ground," she said. "When I got up there, the lady she was just sitting there, and she didn't have no legs. ... And she was just there, calm, probably in shock from everything."

"That could have been all of us -- riding that ride," witness Whitney Sandfer told CNN affiliate WDRB/WMYO.

The incident took place shortly before 5 p.m. ET, according to Six Flags spokeswoman Wendy Goldberg. The park remained open, but the ride in question was shut down and will remain so until the full investigation is complete, Goldberg said.

During the ride, passengers are lifted to 177 feet, suspended momentarily and then dropped, according to the park's Web site.

Passengers drop 154 feet at 54 mph, stopping "just 20 terrifying feet above the pavement," it adds.

"I seen the car go up. Then, like, the cable broke, I heard -- pwchh -- and I heard a lot of people screaming," Chris Stinnett, who was at a ride next to the Superman Tower of Power, told WDRB/WMYO.

"The cable went under the car -- and I seen it pull up and hit a lot of people -- and I seen them bring their legs up," Stinnett said.

The ride was introduced in 1995.


http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/06/21/six.flags.accident/index.html

[carmachu]

Ouch! Holy crap thats bad.

[Water Jess]

There is a reason I stopped riding that thing a long time ago... back before it was known as the "Superman Tower of Power"... it was "The Hellevator". And scared the crap out of me.

[happykat]

Not that it's any consolation, but she will now own Six Flags.

[Water Jess]

Not that it's any consolation, but she will now own Six Flags.

With that kind of money, she could have ROBOFEET!

[SD Anderson]

I hope the doctors can reconnect her legs. They'll never be fully functional again but the alternative isn't that pleasant. Trust me on this. I'm not without some expertise on the matter.

Unfortunately, she probably will not end up owning Six Flags. Disney's lawyers and lobbyists have made the laws governing amusement parks in California and Florida, rather favorable to the parks. It's highly likely that Kentucky and other states modeled their legislation after those two states, and Time/Warner, which owns Six Flags has it's own lobbyists and lawyers.

Kentucky, a red state, likely has a legislature more than willing to cooperate with the Theme park industry. I hold little hope it's laws won't be at least as favorable to the industry as California's.

And the park has insurance.

Litigation is an extremely slow process. And expensive.

[Lugard]

According to msnbc and good morning americ ashe's only 13... which just makes it worse.

[happykat]

My oldest is almost 13. This story is horrible.

[carmachu]

I hope the doctors can reconnect her legs. They'll never be fully functional again but the alternative isn't that pleasant. Trust me on this. I'm not without some expertise on the matter.

Unfortunately, she probably will not end up owning Six Flags. Disney's lawyers and lobbyists have made the laws governing amusement parks in California and Florida, rather favorable to the parks. It's highly likely that Kentucky and other states modeled their legislation after those two states, and Time/Warner, which owns Six Flags has it's own lobbyists and lawyers.

Kentucky, a red state, likely has a legislature more than willing to cooperate with the Theme park industry. I hold little hope it's laws won't be at least as favorable to the industry as California's.

And the park has insurance.

Litigation is an extremely slow process. And expensive.


Weigh that vs the bad press of a cripple 13 year old girl thats brought out in front of the cameras every week as the theme park drags its feet over this.

Its whats called a PR nightmare. Good chances they'll settle it quickly. Unless you want her in front of the park day in and day out showing the tourists whats what.

There's different kinds of hardball.

[Origen]

They will offer her family a check in the low 7-figures to settle right away, plus offer to pay all medical expenses, which her family will probably take.

[carmachu]

They will offer her family a check in the low 7-figures to settle right away, plus offer to pay all medical expenses, which her family will probably take.


Thats not bad, depending on what "all medical expenses" actually means(like say if she needs leg surgery in her 30's).

We'll see what happens. I heard on the radio, they shut down that ride in all their parks across the country.

[BattleNymph]

You know, my 13 year old is at Disneyland today............

[carmachu]

You know, my 13 year old is at Disneyland today............

Well they did shut down all those rides across the country, so its one less thing to worry about....

[Wook]

They will offer her family a check in the low 7-figures to settle right away, plus offer to pay all medical expenses, which her family will probably take.

That's a pretty good silver lining for the rest of your life.

This story is just a great big tragedy though.

[ldygmr1]

That poor girl.

[Stephane]

That's a pretty good silver lining for the rest of your life.

This story is just a great big tragedy though.
If the parents are intelligent enough to invest the money and not touch it. Highly unlikely.

[Wook]

If the parents are intelligent enough to invest the money and not touch it. Highly unlikely.

Yeah the likely, cynicaly speaking, scenario is that the parents turn themselves into her "caregivers" and use the money from her tragedy to live high off the hog for some number of years that is not the rest of her life and then once the money's gone, and they've had time to become bitter at having to take care of her, they'll force her into some managed care facility that'll take all of her disability money every month. She'll essentially be reduced to being someone's revenue stream.

Isn't that a happy thought. :tapedshut:

[Origen]

Silver lining? For who, as Stephane pointed out. There's a reason why so many lottery winners eventually file for bankruptcy.

[Stephane]

well I wasn't thinking it was going to be quite that bad. I was just thinking they would blow the money somewhere and not have anything left for her, but your version is verbose.

[Stephane]

the problem is even I would have a hard time not touching it. I'm in a position that a few hundred thousands would pay off my current mortgage. That would mean my wife(or myself) would be able to stay home full time and take care of the child.

That's not something that insignificant, but that's no silver lining for her.

[Water Jess]

I was talking with my mom earlier... I wonder if they could reattach her feet. The University of Louisville was able to successfully transplant a hand, maybe they could try her feet?

[Windhaven]

If they were severed by a blade there's a good chance. But this was a cable. No cutting edge, just a lot of force all at once.

Without going into the grizzly details of what that means, let's just say that the surrounding tissue may not be intact enough to attach to. Think of trying to attach something to hamburger, if you will.

I pray that I'm wrong, of course.

[Zombie]

It would also depend on where the limbs landed if they ended up under the ride when it came down then they may not have been able to be salvaged to attempt to be reconnected.

even without her legs she will be able to live an independant life - there are enough double amputees that live independant lives that the girl would not be the first.

That point will be one of the points used to reduce the payment as much as possible

[BattleNymph]

That's a pretty good silver lining for the rest of your life.
.

And she's a 13 year old who won't be able to dance or run or skip anymore.

I don't think silver lining is the word here.

I'd rather have my feet than any amount of money.

[Wook]

And she's a 13 year old who won't be able to dance or run or skip anymore.

I don't think silver lining is the word here.

I'd rather have my feet than any amount of money.

Well yeah but you can't undo the amputation at this point so IMHO at least something worthwhile is going to be done for her. Not only that but this sounds like one of those unpredictable, sucky, accidental tragedies. :( If it turns out that there was some cause to know what was going on then by all means lets take six flags to town.

[BattleNymph]

Well yeah but you can't undo the amputation at this point so IMHO at least something worthwhile is going to be done for her. Not only that but this sounds like one of those unpredictable, sucky, accidental tragedies. :( If it turns out that there was some cause to know what was going on then by all means lets take six flags to town.

Actually, I don't think anyone has really proved that anything will be done for her. We're just putting forth supposition. Corporate entities have very little actual concern for their consumers and I doubt very much that 6 Flags is any different.

[ldygmr1]

I imagine this girl will see very little "silver lining" here.

Her life as she thought it would be is forever gone.
Poof. Over. Done.


I don't care how much money you throw at it. It's still horrible.

[Parzival]

I was talking with my mom earlier... I wonder if they could reattach her feet. The University of Louisville was able to successfully transplant a hand, maybe they could try her feet?
Jewish did that, not U of L.
(Yeah, I can be annoying like that.)

[SD Anderson]

the problem is even I would have a hard time not touching it. I'm in a position that a few hundred thousands would pay off my current mortgage. That would mean my wife(or myself) would be able to stay home full time and take care of the child.

That's not something that insignificant, but that's no silver lining for her.

There may be some version of "The Jackie Cooper Law" that protects her, I'm doubtful of that though.

[Water Jess]

Jewish did that, not U of L.
(Yeah, I can be annoying like that.)

Wait, WHAT?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_transplant

The first hand transplant to achieve prolonged success was directed by University of Louisville surgeons Drs. Warren Breidenbach and Tsu-Min Tsai in cooperation with the Kleinert Hand Institute and Jewish Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. The procedure was performed on New Jersey native Matthew Scott on January 24, 1999. Scott had lost his hand in a fireworks accident at age 24.

That's why I got confused. They were UofL doctors.