Man climbs out of coaster when lap bar allegedly releases while climbing lift

Judging by that man's apparent size, that lapbar probably never locked in the first place.

[Ed. note: The linked story is a poor excuse for journalism. While the park did not offer a statement as of publication, the reporter chose not to engage other experts regarding the safety of the ride. It's entirely the account of a person who didn't even want to show his face.]

Is the concern that he faked this to get attention/$$$? I ask because I am not sure what talking to safety experts would accomplish other than them saying this ride is safe and that the lapbar cannot release.

Yikes. That could have been so much worse if he failed to get out in time and the train went over the top.

The concern is that it's crappy journalism, regardless of what happened. One person's account of anything isn't a story.

I suppose that you are not happy with pretty much anything on network news then.

Shades:

Is the concern that he faked this to get attention/$$$? I ask because I am not sure what talking to safety experts would accomplish other than them saying this ride is safe and that the lapbar cannot release.

You answered your own question. A safety expert could have addressed the idea that secured lapbars typcially don't open once they are properly secured. I agree that it's highly likely his bar wasn't secure from the start.

bigboy:

You answered your own question. A safety expert could have addressed the idea that secured lapbars typcially don't open once they are properly secured.

You made my point. So the safety guy says they typically don't open, which means they can open. So what good does talking to a safety guy do?

I saw what I believe was credible video of the incident. The camera was quite some distance, but it did not appear that the gentleman was particularly large.

Shades:

I suppose that you are not happy with pretty much anything on network news then.

That's a completely incorrect assessment of the news shown on the big three linear networks. They don't source any story on one person.

This is exactly how the story would be presented on any of the big 3, at least at the local level - think Fox 8 up in Cleveland. The linked clip did not surprise me at all.

Start the timer for Senator Markey to jump in front of a camera again stating that the federal government should be in charge of inspections.

bigboy:

You answered your own question. A safety expert could have addressed the idea that secured lapbars typcially don't open once they are properly secured. I agree that it's highly likely his bar wasn't secure from the start.

That would be my guess. The guy claims the worker never checked his lap bar before the train left the station.

but no statement from the park yet concerning this incident???

Shades:

So the safety guy says they typically don't open, which means they can open.

I mean ... this is unserious. All of us here know that restraints are not supposed to open, and it's a fail if they do. The safety guy can help explain how much of a risk there actually was.

And that would be useful, because while there are definitely rides I wouldn't want to be on without a functioning restraint (El Toro, say), but this doesn't really look like one of them. He was probably more at risk by climbing out of a moving train onto a catwalk - either from slipping and falling, or twisting an ankle, or being halfway out of the car as it sped down the hill. At a minimum, the restraint should have protected the guy from himself.

(Also, I suppose, if the ride had stalled at the top of the loop or something, that would suck. But also be so unlikely as to be negligible.)

Doing that much investigation might have led the reporter to focus the story differently - like, "Kids, don't get out of a moving ride!" I suspect this report is state of the art for local news, which often doesn't even send a camera crew, just a reporter with a tripod. But it really wouldn't have killed them to find someone, anyone, to ask "how much danger was he in?"

hambone:

And that would be useful, because while there are definitely rides I wouldn't want to be on without a functioning restraint (El Toro, say), but this doesn't really look like one of them.

Was wondering that myself. Would he have really flown out if he had stayed on the ride??

Shades:

at least at the local level

Local news (which this story is) is not network. This is an NBC affiliate, but it ain't NBC News.

I am not a “safety expert” but it seems to me that the train would have kept him in. Would have been scary as hell though.

hambone:

I mean ... this is unserious.

For real. I almost didn't use "typically" because I thought someone would go that way. Lap bars don't open on their own short of a massive structural failure. They are fail safe. The default position is locked. A properly secured lap bar does not open on its own.

wahoo skipper:

I saw what I believe was credible video of the incident. The camera was quite some distance, but it did not appear that the gentleman was particularly large.

Watch the news story clip. At about 50 seconds there's a shot from the back of the man. He's massive. I feel pretty confident in saying that he PROBABLY was too big. I didn't design the ride, and it's been almost 30 years since I've ridden it, but in my experience (and according to my CB membership card) it doesn't look likely that he would have fit. That, of course, would be the fault of the ride op.

If I ran that park or built the ride or insured the ride, I for one would want to know what happened before I sent out another train.

In the world of machinery and safety, I believe at least 2 things are constant:

1) People will act inappropriately in a way that compromises safety, whether accidentally or purposefully.

2) Machines can break.

Ryan the Ride Mechanic on youtube did a nice video explanation of what he thought happened. The guy would have been fine w/o the lap bar. On an rmc, not so much... but those have extra seatbelts.