Amusement Park rides...bad?

Question

As we all have heard about the the tragic incident of the 13 year old girl losing her feet at the Six Flags in Kentucky...How many of you feel amusement park rides are too dangerous?
I don't worry myself too much about them, because though incidents have happened, they're quite rare-but as I was reading the article on the six flags story, I was surprised to hear that some people out there actually blame the poor girl for her misfortune , and saying that it's mindless to get on any ride. Some people think amusement park rides are despicable, and that it's sickening that the government would waste time making amusement parks, and actually risk people's lives for money...I don't know, I never really thought about it heh...I thought that it was a little too much anxiety

Answer 1

Yes that ride in Kentucky went horribly wrong but it wasn't the girl's fault. Things like that are rare and people who say that amusement parks are unsafe would think driving a car is unsafe which it is to a degree, but we can't live in fear of what might happen if we did we would all be locked inside our houses and never leave because something bad might happen. We have to get over fearing everything that isn't a hundred percent safe because nothing is but that doesn't mean you shouldn't use good judgment before getting on a ride like that. If it looks unsafe or like something might be wrong with it don't ride it.

Answer 2

I think there's a lot to look at based on what you're saying. First, any type of mechanical transportation can be dangerous because of the difficulty involved in stopping it. Look at our automobile accidents every day for an example. I would have to say that in the case of the recent Six Flags accident, neither the girl nor the park is to blame if the park was doing routine checks on the ride as most theme parks do. Any time you get on a ride or any moving vehicle, you risk your safety to a degree. If you put it in perspective, more people are hurt in automobile accidents because there are more of them than theme park rides. Malfunctions happen, and there isn't a way to stop every single one.



I worked at three different theme parks over the years in Florida, and I have to say that I would not hesitate to go on any of their rides because I have both heard and seen their safety checks in the mornings which even involve the employees going on the rides first to check them out.



However, where I see a gray area is with carnival rides. After working at these parks, I hesitate to ever go on a traveling carnival ride again. There is SUCH a difference in the way carnival workers set up a ride versus a theme park. That is why more ride accidents occur at carnivals than theme parks. Well, that and the fact that not all theme parks were reporting their accidents until the last ten years, but even then, their accidents were few and far between.



Of course, the most ironic fact is the increase in the popularity of a ride after an accident. I witnessed a man fall out of the Superman roller coaster at Darien Lake Six Flags back in 1997. The line when it re-opened was twice as long. The same has happened elsewhere. People know their lives are somewhat at risk on these rides, and most don't seem to care.

Answer 3

Everything out there is prone to failure.....there is no such thing as perfect. Rides are just like any other piece of technology, they will brake/fail at one point or another. You cannot expect them to function properly forever. All rides are dangerous (some rides are more dangerous than others)that's why all of them get tested, planned in advanced before being built, and given a lot maintence. People cannot blame the government or anybody else for accidents that happen....it is our choice wheather to get on the rides or not, nobody makes us ride them. Either way you can never keep people happy and satisfied, if there werent amusement parks people would complain that they arent provided with fun/entertainment....but if we do have the parks, they complain that they're dangerous and risk their lives.

Answer 4

I was at cedar point four days ago, which is basically the same thing as six flags, just a little farther out of the way for me...I rode ever coaster there, and I don't think they're dangerous at all, theres a lot of time and money spent to make sure that the rides are working properly...



i think the six flags incident was just a freak accident.

Answer 5

I've been on the ride that the girl had her feet cut off in and I'd have to say the design wasn't very good. There were exposed cable and a lot of them and the braking system wasn't smooth at all. I would it was the park's fault in that case, but overall I feel that roller coasters and thrill rides are incredibly same. Here is a credit to their safety: A roller coaster designer once said that you have a better change of dying in a skateboard accident than ever getting hurt on a thrill ride.

Answer 6

I haven't walked into an amusement park, for about 2-3 summers now. I used to go on roller coasters, when I went on them, but I wasn't a huge fan of them. I don't think parks, inspect their rides enough. You always hear about ride accidents. The park I used to go to, always had at least 4 broken down rides, when I was there. (Everytime) Maybe these parks are so short handed, they need more employess.

Answer 7

with todays technology most accidents are the riders fault like not keeping there hands/feet inside the train/vehicle. but old wooden roller coasters are still operating today and can cause injury's. some more serious than the others, for example, i rode a roller coaster(wooden) in new orleans and it hurt my back a little because it jerked me around. i don't think todays rides are that dangerous as long as they have routine safty checks and people follow the guidelines.

Answer 8

I myself love them. I lived in Florida and been on all the rides there 100's of times (bush gardens, disney world, epcot, universal) well u get the picture. My opinion is u do or u dont. I do belive that there all realy dangerous but isnt that the fun of it? Yes, some of the rides are more dangerous than others but its not the coaster its the design of them and the tunnels that are bad, like the one the girl lost her feet in. They do need to do more random check ups on them. One of my friends at Bush swore she saw part of the coaster come off the tracks, and she told one of the park mang. they stopped the ride and shut it down the rest of the day, now we dont know exactly what happened but they did listen and took action very quickly,so they do care. BUT like I said before it is all up to you. I know I'll keep ridin, ITs fun.

Answer 9

cedar point has NEVER had an accident that severely hurt anybody. occasionally people will do stupid things and they will get hurt but accidents like six flags are rare because these rides are very safe. power tower at cedar point which is very similar is safe also, more safe then the one at six flags. but i still dont like it.

Answer 10

geez... I LOVE LOVE Cedar Point... but after that incident, I won't go back on the Power Tower (same type of ride, I think)... but you can't keep me off roller coasters ....they are too much of a thrill... I am going at the end of July! yay!

Answer 11

I disagree, i dont believe amusement park rides are bad.. they are great, depending upon which park you visit, i've only been to one, which was Disneyworld, which is trustworthy..

Answer 12

it is extremely rare for an instance like this, those ppl who said that stuff are like really extreme.



amusement parks are meant for safe fun, go have fun



srry if i sound like an add

Answer 13

what are the odds of that happening though i wouldnt mind losing my feet on a roller coaster because all id smell is LAWSUIT

Answer 14

yes i do. yes these things are rare but so are a lot of things but they still happen. where do you think Final destination came from