12-Year-Old Girl Plunges 40 Feet After 'Free Fall' Theme Park Ride Malfunctions

MADISON, Wis. — A 12-year-old girl at an amusement park plunged more than 40 feet to the ground on Friday, seriously injuring herself when a safety net under a "free fall" attraction failed to catch her.

Police declined to identify the girl or to elaborate on her injuries, but said she was from out of state and was visiting the Wisconsin Dells with her family. The area is a popular Midwest tourist destination known for its amusement parks.

On its website, Extreme World amusement park describes its Terminal Velocity ride as a one-of-a-kind experience that offers an "unattached, controlled free fall." Participants are outfitted in a special harness, taken up in an elevator, and then dropped straight down into a "huge airtube supported net."

After the girl was released for her fall, "the net mechanism that was supposed to catch her and break her fall was not high enough above the ground to completely break the fall and she did hit the ground," Lake Delton Police Chief Thomas Dorner said.

Dorner said the girl was treated by amusement park employees and family before emergency responders arrived, around noon. She was eventually transported to the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison by helicopter. Dorner said details of her injuries were not available, and hospital spokeswoman Lisa Brunette said she could not share them.

Extreme World owner Bill Anderson said it was the first accident in the 8-year history of the ride, which will be closed while police and state regulators investigate the accident. He said Extreme World, which also operates bungee jumping and other attractions, was closed Friday but would reopen on Saturday.

Department of Commerce spokesman Tony Hozeny said the ride was inspected on June 28, and there were no violations found. He said the ride has been inspected every year since 2004, and there was only been one minor violation found in 2008, which was immediately fixed.

"We want to express our sympathy to this person who was injured," Hozeny said. "As soon as we learned of this accident, we sent an inspector on site who is still investigating the situation to find out the facts."

Ken Martin, an amusement ride safety consultant based in Richmond, Va., said nets have failed at least twice on similar rides elsewhere – once in July 2003 in California, and once in Florida in November 2002.

Dorner said the investigation by his department and the Sauk County Sheriff's Department also continues.

Extreme World promises riders on its website that air tubes and break suspensions around the net "stop your fall so softly that you feel virtually no impact at all." The company compares the sensation to a parachute jump.

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Online:

Extreme World amusement park: http://www.extremeworld.com/

Comments

[Descutner]

07:21 PM on 08/07/2010

I've never understood the appeal of doing something potentially dangerous just for the fun of it. Yes, as a kid and young adult, I was a roller coaster rider, etc. But as I got older, and saw the danger of many rides, it just lost its appeal to me. I just don't need to have the poop scared out of me to feel alive. Watching a scary movie or reading a thrilling book does it for me. Or just reading the news online! That'll do it every time!!

[Keke Uniqe Bbt]

06:28 PM on 08/05/2010

what are they gonna do about him signing the waiver? im pretty sure it is written on the paper that the amusement park is not held liable for injuries or accident. why would he let his daughter get on a ride where theres a 50 percent chance she will or wont survive? why let her get on a ride because he saw other people get on it and walk way ok, she is not them. why did the amusement park only check the ride once in june on the 28th, it has been a whole month since it was inspected? it should be checked at least once a week when the park is putting lives in danger and people are putting themselves in danger. remeber parents always said safety first, and i agree nothing is 100 percent safe but maintnance can help stop more than 90 percent of accidents.

[johnnygoodwud]

01:31 PM on 08/02/2010

'extreme' law suite coming up.

[pinkeyelemonade]

06:52 AM on 08/02/2010

How sad and awful. I hope she recovers quickly.

Even half an accident is unacceptable, but it's good to know that this seems like a rarity for the park. Better to read about the first accident in the entire eight years of the park's existence than to read about multiple safety violations going unchecked or unreported.

It's just too bad that anything like this happened at all. I blame the park. While it may be sour judgment for a parent to allow their children on a "ride" like that, millions of kids attend theme parks every year with no incident, and go home unscathed...parents should be able to trust these places. A theme park or even a county fair can be safe and fun even with risks or the illusion of risks and adventure.

Even while I blame the park, and whichever carnie was sitting on his cabbage-scented thumbs at the critical moment, it seems like they've held a responsible reputation over the years. Accidents happen. I'm sure they feel just great on the inside about this. Blame, in the end, helps no one. But I'm tired of hearing about kids losing their legs or their heads [yes, these are actual events I'm referring to] or their ability to otherwise function because they went out to have some FUN. More should be done to regulate these extreme worlds and their extremely life-threatening attractions. It's scary how many amusement-park accidents have happened in the last decade.

[BushBites]

12:57 PM on 08/01/2010

Too "extreme."

[mftinvermont]

07:04 AM on 08/01/2010

Sometimes parents have to shoulder some of the blame. My 11 year old son wanted to go on a ride just like that at Six Flags Great Escape in Glens Falls, NY. and I would not let him. Period.

[BushBites]

12:58 PM on 08/01/2010

Agree.

Anybody who trusts their kid to some carnie shyster selling bungie cord rides over a parking lot has to have his head examined.

[Ichiro51]

11:45 PM on 08/01/2010

Blame for the company not having their safety precautions in order? Would you "blame" a parent for letting their child ride in a car whose airbag did not deploy in an accident?

Tell me, how many injuries were suffered at the Six Flags Great Escape in Glens Falls, N.Y. on that day your son wanted to go on the ride.

[jsgaetano]

03:12 AM on 08/01/2010

I never really understood the appeal of this.

Bungie jumping above the Grand Canyon... yeah that makes sense. But bungie jumping over... a parking lot? Meh, I'll take a pass.

[BlindChance]

01:38 PM on 08/01/2010

Baby steps.

[jsgaetano]

03:26 PM on 08/01/2010

I'm not talking about the height, although that's irrelevant since you aren't supposed to fall.

I'm talking about the location and the view. And kind of having a little self-respect in case things go wrong. If the cord snaps, do you want your place of death to be the Grand Canyon, or a Walmart parking lot?

[Tom95134]

01:56 AM on 08/01/2010

Nothing is 100% safe... NOTHING!

[kev1000]

11:45 PM on 07/31/2010

Why'd it have to be a 12 year old? Why a kid?

[JTJMOMEDTEK]

02:44 AM on 08/01/2010

because that's who likes to go on those kinds of rides and some lazy ass maintence man didn't feel like doing his job.

[TRUTHDOG]

05:09 AM on 08/01/2010

Or ........... The maintenance person wasn't allowed to fix a problem due to his bosses wanting to save a few bucks. Happens EVERY day !

[mftinvermont]

07:01 AM on 08/01/2010

Or the parents letting a child go on that kind of ride in the first place.

[whomod]

02:56 AM on 08/01/2010

What's the difference? I don't get it.

Would it have been any less upsetting if it was an adult. How about a man instead of a woman?

BTW, amusement park thrill rides are usually the domain of young teens seeking said thrills.

[kev1000]

03:18 AM on 08/01/2010

Well, call me ageist, but I'm about to turn 36. Now, that's not a long life, but it's a lot longer than 12. I've lived my life. This poor kid hasn't even started hers. A man my age knows the risks involved, she, being 12, may not have.

The gender doesn't really matter to me one way or the other.

Finally, yes, rides such as this attract young teens, but this was a 'ride' styled after an extreme sport, which grown men execute successfully a lot. I guess what I'm asking is, with everything that could go wrong with bungee jumping, hang-gliding, BASE jumping, etc, why did an innocent kid have to be the victim?

[maple shaft]

11:30 PM on 07/31/2010

I never understood the attraction to rides like this. I won't even ride on a roller coaster because they are just too intense. Why someone would willingly do this and find it fun amazes me.

I understand the rush of adrenaline but I never found that enjoyable.

[Tom95134]

01:59 AM on 08/01/2010

For many people they feel the most alive when they are facing an "experience".

"You only live twice:
Once when you're born
And once when you look death in the face."
— Ian Fleming

[rini]

09:22 AM on 08/01/2010

Life has enough thrill and danger for me. I don't have to go seek it out. If I want to look death in the face, I'll read about rogue nuclear weapons, terrorism, climate change and cancer.

Also, in most cases, rides just give the illusion of danger (sadly, in the case above, it was more than that.) On a ride, you do nothing. There is no requirement for physical fitness, coordination or speed. Skiing or snowboarding down a mountain..now that would be a real thrill, if I wanted one (although I'm too scared and inexperienced to go down anything steep, myself.) Rides are just a sad approximation....IMHO.

[BushBites]

01:00 PM on 08/01/2010

They should get involved in athletics.

Pushing yourself to the limit is a hell of a rush.

And it's good for you.

[whomod]

02:58 AM on 08/01/2010

Yeah. Exactly.

It seems that on this occasion, the end result was exactly what you get when you plunge from great heights.

Why do people think they can tempt fate and cheat death for 'thrills'? As Tom said above, nothing is 100% safe, not thrill rides, not airplanes, not even an elevator.

[ChicagoBob]

11:13 PM on 07/31/2010

The world is a dangerous place. It is full of hard, sharp corners, most of them man-made, and there are no soft landings if you fall.

Anybody who thinks we can make things safe 100% of the time is delusional.

That said, I do hope the girl will make a complete recovery.

[rini]

09:23 AM on 08/01/2010

It doesn't sound good. She was clinically dead after she landed. They brought her back. She may be brain dead (I hope I'm wrong.)

[Jerry Barry]

09:58 PM on 07/31/2010

Extreme World amusement park describes its Terminal Velocity ride as a one-of-a-kind experience!
I can't argue with this ride being one-of-a-kind experience because not many rides drop you on the ground at high speed.
I hope the little girl is okay and recovers from her injuries.

[dems08]

09:48 PM on 07/31/2010

"... nets have failed at least twice on similar rides elsewhere – once in July 2003 in California, and once in Florida in November 2002."

3 times in 8 years???

yikes!

[JustlikeMercury]

10:11 PM on 07/31/2010

I had a friend be seriously injured in a deck collapse on July 4th, and those are wwaaaaayyyy more common than this. My heart absolutely goes out to the family, and all those affected by these freak accidents. The Massey Mines in WV had more violations than this place, so I really would consider it a freak accident.

[SuperMoncho]

09:14 PM on 07/31/2010

That poor girl, sounds so painful. Hope she recovers and gets a huge settlement

[Tom95134]

02:00 AM on 08/01/2010

Better read the fine print on the back of the ticket she bought (or her parents bought for her).

[rini]

09:24 AM on 08/01/2010

Yeah, but what were the chances? No one thinks that it will be them, first of all. Secondly, why would the stupid net fail??

[firstep]

09:09 PM on 07/31/2010

Boycott ride parks.