Attraction Source Forum

Let's see.

1. Fujin Raijin II is a Togo coaster. Not Intamin. (one dead, 19 injured)
2. Steel Dragon 2000 is a Morgan coaster. Not Intamin. (wheel assembly falls off, coaster derails, injures 2)
3. Wild Thing is a Morgan coaster. Not Intamin. (coaster derails, injures 14)
4. Batman & Robin: The Chiller is a Premier Rides coaster. Not Intamin. (wheel assembly falls off, all Premier launched coasters shut down)
5. Raging Wolf Bobs is a Dinn Manufacturing coaster. Not Intamin. (coaster derailed)
6. Timber Tower is a Huss ride. Not Intamin. (riders stranded for 6 hours)
7. Magnum XL-200 is an Arrow coaster. Not Intamin. (bumping trains)
8. Enterprise is manufactured by Huss. Not Intamin. (ride fire)
9. BORG Assimilator is a Vekoma coaster. Not Intamin. (seats unlocked while ride was in motion)
10. Son of Beast isn't an Intamin. (structure breaks, injuring 27)

I only listed the events I'm aware of off the top of my head. So, there are PLENTY of accidents that happen on non-Intamin rides

Yes, of course there are accidents from other manufacturers' rides but that's 10 incidents from 9 different manufacterers and I wouldn't really class stranded riders as an accident. Even the ones that are accidents are mostly very minor.

Just look at the recent accidents on Intamin rides in comparison

1) Lapbar failure on Hydro(1 death)
2) Simular incident with Perilous plunge - don't think that this was fatal though
3) Superman Ride of steel lapbar failure (1 death)
4) Lapbar failure on Journey to Atlantis (1 death)
5) Cable snapping on TTD (front few cars injured)

And now the Superman Power of Tower incident too. You have to say that the proportion of major Intamin acciedents to other manufactures is quite worrying

I could be mistaken, but none of those lap bars FAILED as you would indicate in your Intamin doom and gloom theory. They didn't release and eject the person. They all "failed" because the guest was too large to ride and the ride operator allowed the ride to dispatch against the operating standards set forth by Intamin. So, they slipped out of the restraint when it really wasn't secure in the first place. But, the mechanics of the restraint didn't release.

I don't fault a ride manufacturer for something the park should be doing. Also, at least in the case of TTD, that was CP's fault, not Intamin's. A cable is a wearable item and should be checked regularly for fatigue. Obviously they didn't do this. Are you blaming Intamin because they designed a ride that used a cable? Maybe we should just take every amusement ride off the market that uses a cable or chain? Oh wait, that's almost every single amusement ride out there.

The cable snapping on Tower of Power could also have been a maintenance issue related to that park. If it was, I fail to see how that's Intamin's fault.

Togo shouldn't be blamed for the death in Japan because the park failed to replace that wheel assembly for the entire life of the coaster. Or, according to you, maybe they should. Honestly, though, that's ridiculous.

EDIT: Just to be clear, here are the findings from the ride accidents you quoted.

1. Hydro - Park ride ops admitted to not even checking the restraints on the ride. So, most likely, the girl wasn't even secured in the vehicle. How is not checking safety restraints Intamin's fault?

2. Perilous Plunge - The woman was too large to ride and Knott's should have not let her on. Intamin designated the size of guests that could ride and the park ignored that fact. Not Intamin's fault. California still mandated the ride be changed to guests of exceptional size could ride.

3. Superman: Ride of Steel - The man was too large for the restraint system, was physically handicapped and Six Flags allowed the train to dispatch anyways. The investigation showed he was turned away from the ride several times before for being too large.

4. I can only assume you meant Atlantis Adventure in Seoul. The park employee was drunk when he boarded this attraction. The ride op also allowed the train to dispatch without lowering the safety restraint. If you are claiming this is somehow Intamin's fault, WOW.

5. Top Thrill Dragster - Again, a cable failing is wear and tear. Cedar Point should have checked the cable more frequently to avoid the cable snapping. These massive cables just don't snap without warning.

I'm not claiming Intamin is without some fault. However, if you look at how many people safely ride their attractions every year, it's obvious their rides are safe, when properly operated and maintained. Could they make restraints that are more forgiving to overweight passengers? Sure. That's what we have with Rita and Maverick's restraints which totally destroy the ride for everyone else. Yay for lawsuits!! :rolleyes:

[quote=""halltd""]The investigation showed he was turned away from the ride several times before for being too large. [/quote]

Thats just stupid... did he have a death wish or something... if ur too fat to ride a ride, loose weight... theres sizes for a reason

thinking about it ive read many cases of coaster accidents/deaths... most of them are PURE idiosy!!! most of them are when people go into the "DO NOT ENTER OUT OF BOUNDS" area (which are littered with those signs) and get hit by the car when it goes past... HELLO?! surely the signs are a big enough hint! or theyre because of bad maintenence!

^^ Chris ^^

I could be mistaken, but none of those lap bars FAILED as you would indicate in your Intamin doom and gloom theory. They didn't release and eject the person. They all "failed" because the guest was too large to ride and the ride operator allowed the ride to dispatch against the operating standards set forth by Intamin. So, they slipped out of the restraint when it really wasn't secure in the first place. But, the mechanics of the restraint didn't release.

I don't fault a ride manufacturer for something the park should be doing. Also, at least in the case of TTD, that was CP's fault, not Intamin's. A cable is a wearable item and should be checked regularly for fatigue. Obviously they didn't do this. Are you blaming Intamin because they designed a ride that used a cable? Maybe we should just take every amusement ride off the market that uses a cable or chain? Oh wait, that's almost every single amusement ride out there.

It's not an Intamin doom and glory theory as you call it. I like Intamin rides. I just think that their safety is lapse compared to other manufacturers.

My point is that overweight people are accidentally let onto rides by all manufatcurers. Why is it only Intamin's lapbars that fail under these circumstances? I have never seen an incident quite like this with any other manufacturer. Do you not find this at all strange? If a lapbar doesn't hold a person in, that's called a failure in my book. You can't just say " They were technically too heavy, so that's okay" there should be safety margins in place to prevent this from happening.

And no, I don't blame Intamin for designing rides that involve cables, but I do blame them for seemingly installing no guard or safety mechanism should the cable snap.

And as for maintainance, are Intamins the only undermaintained and badly operated rides in the world? No they're not. There are other rides in abysmal condition with bad safety proceedures that still operate safely. The mistakes made on Intamin rides that have lead to the accidents are worryingly easy to make

Well, if you look at the rides that have deaths or serious injuries on them, they're all very extreme rides. I'm not including Atlantis Adventure because that wasn't an "accident" - it was pure stupidity.

Intamin is known for pushing the boundaries on rides to make them scary and intense. Superman: Ride of Steel is pure airtime. I just rode it two weekends ago. It's no wonder the guy flew out. I also noticed staff at Six Flags jamming people into the coaster that were OBVIOUSLY too big to ride. They're just asking for the same thing to happen again. However, they've modified the lap bar on that thing so it's basically impossible to come out. It's also one of the most uncomfortable restraints on a coaster.

Perilous Plunge is the tallest and steepest flume in the world. Again, pushing boundaries. Of course if someone is too big, they're going to die.

The reason other manufacturers don't see the same failures is because their rides aren't as extreme. If a lap bar opened - and i mean literally opened - on Big Thunder Mountain, I wouldn't die. Hell, I doubt I would even notice. When you push the boundaries with rides, though, you're bound to have accidents.

When you push the boundaries with rides, though, you're bound to have accidents.

That's exactly what's wrong. This shouldn't be the case at all. With any ride it should be safety first, thrill second. Intamin may build insane rides, but they haven't improved their safety standards to accomodate for this.

For me that's why Intamin aren't my favouite manufacturer. Their rides are great, but they don't spend time on other aspects of the rides such as reliability, quality, aging and safety. Their coasters just feel a bit "rushed" to me

You missed my point altogether. I'm not saying the deaths on Intamin's rides are acceptable because they were extreme rides. I'm saying BECAUSE they were extreme rides AND the ride ops didn't do their jobs, the people came out. Had the ride been tame and the ride op not done their job, the people would not have been ejected. It's as simple as that.

I believe the quality of Intamin's rides are top notch. They're among the smoothest coasters I've ever been on and I also feel they're the most safe. Their restraints have quadruple fail safes on them. B&M rides don't have that. How's that saying Intamin isn't quality?

You can't simply blame only a manufacturer for reliability and aging of a coaster either. Rides require a TON of maintenance. A lot of that responsibility lies with the park that owns the attraction. If they don't maintain it, it's going to break down and age poorly.

Millennium Force has aged beautifully. Superman: Ride of Steel on the other hand is considerably rougher. They're both the same age. I wonder why one is so much smoother? Could it be the park that maintains each? I would say yes.

I agree totally with halltd, for a start if Intamin rides were not safe, then they wouldnt be operating, secondly, Intamin are not responsible for how the park operators run the rides, thats the theme parks responsibility and thirdly, how can you say Intamin are not as safe as any other manufacturer? they all abide by the same Health and Safety laws, if they didnt then they wouldnt be built..simple!

anway, back the this incident itself, it seems there is a little confusion over what actally happened here, taken from coasterforce.com

"The drop tower ride winches the riders to the top of a 177ft tower before dropping them down at 54mph. In this instance, the cable snapped on the decent meaning it could not stop and it hit the floor, destroying the girls feet below her ankles."

So, what actually happened? did the cable sever her legs, or were her lgs smashed to bits as the car came shashing to the ground?

H&S requirements are the minimum safety requirements. Just because a ride complies with them doesn't necissarily make it as safe as other rides. I'm not tying to say that all Intamin rides are death machines, I just think that Intamin should really re-evaluate the safety of their rides after so many simular accidents have happened on their rides

For once this incident apparently isn't completely Intamin's fault, half of the blame lies with Six Flags.

Apparently the rides cable which was added in 2003 was due for replacement in 2005. However Six Flags hadn't got round to replacing it. It sounds alot like the Mindbender crash which wasn't Scwarzkopfs fault, and was Galaxyland's due to them not inspecting it as the ride manual was in German...

Mind you a similar incident happened on Hurakan Condor last year I believe, whilst no-one was hurt maybe these rides are due for a redesign.

I'm failing to grasp all of you guys' thought processes. It has been clearly demonstrated that none of the incident's were the manufacturer's faults. Yet, you still claim Intamin should redesign their rides. KI-netic - in your first sentence, you say the cable should have been replaced in 2005. Then you end by saying Intamin should redesign the ride. How does that make ANY sense?

Also, it is next to impossible for this type of ride to "crash into the ground and smash the girl's feet". The ride is stopped by permanent magnets on the carriage. So, regardless of the cable snapping or not, it would stop before hitting the ground. Besides, if it HAD smashed into the ground, don't you think more than one person's feet would have been injured?

My point is that even if the accidents are the parks' fault, these kinds of mistakes will continue to happen. Intamin have the responsibility of designing their rides to compensate for this, but they seemingly haven't learned from past experience that you can't always rely on the park to run the ride safely.

That's why other manufacturers like B&M over-engineer their restraints with double-locking systems and seatbelts, so that if a ride host misses a faulty restraint or a person is too large for the coaster, it will still go round the course safely

erm yes but Intamin coasters also have seatbelts on..such as Stealth and Rita, its not asthough B&M are the only manufacturer that do use seatbelts

[quote=""halltd""]I'm failing to grasp all of you guys' thought processes. It has been clearly demonstrated that none of the incident's were the manufacturer's faults. Yet, you still claim Intamin should redesign their rides. KI-netic - in your first sentence, you say the cable should have been replaced in 2005. Then you end by saying Intamin should redesign the ride. How does that make ANY sense?[/quote]

It makes perfect sense.

It's not like this is the first time a cable on this type of ride has snapped, look at Hurakan Condor, that snapped in November last year, fortunately it didn't cause any serious injuries. However it is clear that the ride type suffers from certain design flaws.

[quote=""me""]For once this incident apparently isn't completely Intamin's fault, half of the blame lies with Six Flags.[/quote]

I actually said half of the blame, the other half obviously goes with Intamin, espcially as a similar accident like this happened so early in Hurakan Condor's lifespan.

Whilst Six Flags should of maintained the ride better, Intamin are at fault also, as the HC incident occured when the ride was virtually brand new, and the cable obviously didn't need replacing, yet an incident still occured.

Intamin have released a statement, as follows:

The manufacturer of the Superman Tower of Power (Intamin) says it did not supply the cable that sliced off a girl's feet at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom on Thursday. The ride's cables and wire ropes would have had the need for replacement at least several times since the ride opened in 1995. Intamin says it has not supplied parts for the ride for 13 years.

Seems like Six Flags just havent bothered to replace the wire and cables.

Surely then Intamin would have refused to insure it meaning it can't run if they hadn't of bothered to buy any essential spare parts

[quote=""CGM""]That's why other manufacturers like B&M over-engineer their restraints with double-locking systems and seatbelts[/quote]

Since Alton has an Intamin, I'll use Rita as an example. You do realize the seatbelt on Rita has TWO latches that have to fail, right? No B&M coaster has that. Also, the hydraulic restraint on Rita has two cylinders on it. So, BOTH cylinders have to fail before that restraint is opening. So, if you take Rita, Intamin has designed a quadruple failsafe system into it's restraint system. Also, just so you know, this is the same on all of the newer Intamin coasters - S:ROS included.

B&M doesn't have that. Actually, if you look at B&M rides like Raging Bull, Nitro, Silver Star, etc..., they don't even HAVE seatbelts. So, if that ratcheting lap bar fails or even opens a notch or two, you fly right out. How's that for "over engineering" their rides? Thankfully, they haven't had an accident. But, if they do, you know B&M will be found guilty of providing an unsafe restraining device.

As far as "insuring" rides, Intamin doesn't do that - insurance companies do. Intamin is purely a manufacturer. Once a park buys a ride, they don't have to do anything else with Intamin unless local law says they do. For instance, in Ohio, parks must comply by any and all safety requirements set forth by the manufacturer. I'm not sure what Kentucky law says. As far as replacement parts go, parks don't have to buy them from the manufacturer. They can get them from wherever they want. Again, unless local law says they can't.

If you own a Ford, does Ford insure your car? No. Do you have to buy replacement parts from Ford? No. Can you alter the car which could make it unsafe? Yes. Is that Ford's fault? Nope. It's the same thing with coasters.

halltd, with all due respect concerning your excellent points, you're coming across particularly Intamin-fanboyish .

I think the point many people are trying to get across is not that Intamin are the cause of all ride accidents, but they are certainly in the limelight more often than other manufacturers. Unfortunately the cases picked up by the media have Intamin attached to them in some respect - with many of them not actually Intamin's fault, for example this latest accident.

While not Intamin's fault, do you think the general public who have no knowledge of safety systems and such like are going to see it that way? No. They see the same name cropping up in every news report they read - "Intamin". We know Intamin's rides are safe given the correct maintenance and human attention, but to someone finding these articles on the Internet they would not think twice at pointing the blame, especially with the way in which the latest articles are written.

The poor girl who has lost her legs in what can only be described as a freak accident will almost certainly look to Intamin as her first point of explanation and possibly compensation. They most definately have the right to put their hands up and waiver any responsiblity - this is the park's fault and their shoddy, pathetic attempt at maintenance.

As a final note, there is a higher possibility of Intamin's name being attached to a ride accident becauseof their huge ride market. B&M make coasters.. and that's it. Intamin make coasters, flats and water rides, giving a much wider scope for an accident to be related to a ride which they are connected with.. That's just the way the law of probabilities goes.

[quote=""altontowerskid""] i feel that things like this happen just by pure luck.

[/quote]

Or rather the lack of it.

Does any one know if the girls feet were surgically reattatched?