Records: Man, 30, Died After Disney Ride in April

FRIDAY, JULY 29

Sevierville, Tenn. - Amusement park manager Charles Stan Martin to be sentenced on a conviction for reckless homicide in the death of a woman who fell from a park ride.

------

AP Alert - Florida

July 22, 2005

Records: Man, 30, died after Disney ride in April

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla._A 30-year-old Indiana man who wore a pacemaker lost consciousness and later died at a hospital after going on the Dinosaur ride at Disney's Animal Kingdom in April, according to records released Friday by the state.

Ryan Norman of Mooresville, Ind., complained that he wasn't feeling well and later died at a hospital, according to documents released from the Bureau of Fair Rides and Exhibitions and the Orange County Medical Examiner's Office. He was the second person to die after going on a Walt Disney World ride between April and June 2005.

An investigative report indicated that the April 30 ride didn't play a role in Norman's death since he had a history of heart problems, said Sheri Blanton, senior program manager at the medical examiner's office.

In a written statement Friday, Disney said, "We extend our sympathy to Ryan Norman's loved ones for their loss."

------

Oregonian, The (Portland, OR)

July 21, 2005

Section: Local Stories

Oaks Park settles lawsuit on ride injury

TONY GREEN

Oaks Amusement Park has agreed to pay a small but undisclosed amount to settle a lawsuit filed last year by a man who claimed his daughter was injured on a ride, an attorney for the park said.

The suit, filed last year by Brian K. James on behalf of his then-14-year-old daughter, Kathryn, claimed she was injured on the Looping Thunder Roller Coaster because her safety harness was not snug enough.

The suit, filed by Lake Oswego attorney Randall J. Wolfe, sought $5,000 for medical bills and $175,000 for pain and suffering.

John T. Kaempf, an attorney with the Portland firm of Bullivant Houser Bailey, issued an e-mail statement on behalf of Oaks Park.

"My client, Oaks Park, is proud of its great public safety record going back over 100 years. Our payment of a nominal amount to settle this nuisance case does not change that fact," Kaempf wrote. "Perhaps the best indication of our safety is that Ms. James' attorney brought his own children to enjoy the fun at Oaks Park the weekend after the settlement. It's a shame that this frivolous lawsuit will only drive up our cost of doing business."

Wolfe issued an e-mail response, saying the claim "was in no way frivolous."

"I believe the evidence showed that that an Oaks Parks employee neglected the safety concerns expressed by this young lady after boarding the roller coaster," Wolfe said. "In my opinion, that was the basis of the settlement. If the settlement means that Oaks Park is now a safer place for our children, then we all benefit. "

------

Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)

July 21, 2005

Section: NEWS

Operator tells of quick fix Sizzler repair

Shaun Sutner

The carnival supervisor charged with manslaughter in the death of a man on a Shrewsbury amusement ride last fall installed the wrong nut and bolt on the Sizzler ride even though he knew it was unsafe, the ride's operator told police investigators.

Nearly three months later, Andrew R. Fohlin, 38, was killed when the ride's seating compartment broke apart in an accident. State public safety officials blamed it on a loose lap bar nut that did not meet the manufacturer's specifications, an undersized bolt and nut and a bolt with its head sheared off.

The ride operator, Richard Cruz, 36, of Hernando, Fla., who described himself as an illiterate "ride jock," said he reported to the supervisor, Brian R. McCullough, that the lap bar on the whirling ride's seat number six was loose and the seat frame was not bolted tightly, according to investigative documents obtained by the Telegram & Gazette.

At Mr. McCullough's request, Mr. Cruz found a nut on the carnival's generator to replace a missing nut on the seat. According to Mr. Cruz, after he and Mr. McCullough disassembled the seat, Mr. McCullough put the nut from the generator on the Sizzler, but it didn't fit the bolt.

So the broken seat stayed loosely attached to the main structure of the ride, Mr. Cruz told two state police detectives who interviewed him in Florida on Jan. 5 as part of Worcester District Attorney John J. Conte's investigation.

"He put on the bolt, but he couldn't put the bolt on all the way. After he put the nut on, it was still wobbly," Mr. Cruz said.

Before the repair attempt, Mr. Cruz, who had been running the ride at other carnivals staged by Jaro Amusements of Carlisle, had roped off the compartment and attached a sign written by a co-worker saying: "This seat doesn't work."

Mr. McCullough was responsible for maintaining the Sizzler and the traveling carnival's dozen or so other rides, and signed off on daily inspection logs on the machine. Though he could not write, Mr. Cruz signed his initials on the logs as the person running the ride.

Mr. McCullough, 39, also of Hernando, pleaded not guilty to the manslaughter charge, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. He is next due in court Sept. 8.

When Mr. Cruz said he would go to The Home Depot for the right parts, Mr. McCullough threatened to lock him out of the carnival's trailer compound if he left, according to records of the interview that formed the basis for Mr. Cruz' testimony before the grand jury that indicted Mr. McCullough on June 17.

"He said I wasn't going to go to Home Depot just to get a nut and a bolt," according to Mr. Cruz's statement. "We put the seat together. We put it together and called it a night."

That incident occurred June 23, 2004, at the carnival's stop in Mansfield. Mr. Fohlin, a resident of a state-run group home for the mentally retarded, was killed Sept. 19, while the carnival was set up at a family festival at St. Mary's Church in Shrewsbury.

Mr. Cruz was fired the day after the loose nut was put on the Sizzler, but the ride apparently was not properly fixed during months leading up to the accident.

When the investigators asked him why he was fired, he said it was because his girlfriend told Mr. McCullough's wife - a game operator he referred to as "boss" - that he had assaulted her, which Mr. Cruz denied. Mr. Cruz added that Mr. McCullough still owed him a paycheck.

Two days before Mr. Cruz talked with police, three workers for another carnival company, Fiesta Shows of Seabrook, N.H., where Mr. Cruz went to work after leaving Jaro, corroborated many details of his account.

The co-workers each told the police in separate interviews on Jan. 3 in Massachusetts that Mr. Cruz told them after the Sizzler accident that he and Mr. McCullough had taken apart and fixed the seat but did not correct the problem.

While some of the details of their accounts conflicted, they all agreed that Mr. Cruz said that either the existing bolt was too small or that they put in a new bolt and nut that were too small.

One of the carnival employees, Steven Rebal, of Salisbury, told the investigators that Mr. Cruz "knew the seat was not right" after he and Mr. McCullough worked on it, and told Jaro's owner, John J. "Jack" Keough, about it.

Neither Mr. Cruz nor Mr. Keough has been charged in the case.

Another Fiesta employee, Dyt E. Cook of Seabrook, said Mr. Cruz told the workers that he feared Mr. McCullough would blame him for the accident.

Mr. Cook also said Mr. Cruz said Jaro's ride inspection reports were filled out in advance for the entire week.

Public safety officials have charged Jaro with shoddy record-keeping and maintenance practices.

"They are supposed to do a check each day, but you couldn't tell if it was done because they already filled it out in one day and left it at the office or whatever," Mr. Cook said in his statement.

In his statement, Mr. Cruz said most Sizzlers he had worked with "had a paper that says what is wrong, and the maintenance guy would come and fix it.

"This Sizzler doesn't have any paper," he said. "You had to write it on the daily inspection, or tell them. I don't know how to write, so I told Brian myself.

"He said that he would get to it when we get to Mansfield," he continued.

The third carnival worker who spoke with the police, Randle Parent of Seabrook, said Mr. Cruz told him and the others that he and Mr. McCullough had replaced a bolt, but did not have the right bolt on hand.

Mr. Parent also said Mr. Cruz was afraid that Mr. McCullough would try to blame him.

"Some of the guys were joking around saying that it was all my fault," Mr. Cruz told the investigators. "I told them I was not the maintenance guy."

------

Sentinel (Stoke, UK)

July 22, 2005

Towers fails to turn over ruling on noise

SENTINEL REPORTER

The owners of Alton Towers have failed in their bid to overturn an order which limits noise levels at the theme park.

An appeal judge yesterday ruled that noise from screaming thrillseekers, tannoy announcements, music events and fireworks displays caused a 'statutory nuisance' for homeowners living near the site.

But details of any new noise abatement order will not be known until both sides have argued their case later today.

Alton Towers' owners Tussaud's had lodged an appeal after Farley residents Stephen and Suzanne Roper won a private case against them in a magistrates' court in November.

They had objected to incessant noise from mechanical rides and screaming on a daily basis, and from special events such as concerts and fireworks displays.

The Ropers, who moved into their house in 1968, claimed Alton Towers went on to make their lives a misery as the attraction expanded over the years.

The current order handed out by a district judge limits the park to one 30-minute firework display a year and restricts the noise produced by the rides.

The two-week appeal at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard evidence from a number of residents living close to the Ropers who backed their objections, as well as sound experts for both sides.

Beverley Ryan, of Cotton, had compared noise from the attraction to a "war zone".

The court also heard from other residents living within half a mile of the attraction, who heard noise but felt it did not intrude on their daily lives.

But Judge William Everard, sitting alongside two magistrates, said in his ruling they either lived too far away from the attraction to be relevant to the case, or admitted the attraction caused considerable noise.

He added that evidence given by the Ropers had been "honest" and "compelling", and was backed by other residents living in their area.

Judge Everard also said he needed to take into account the "cumulative impact" of the different noises on the Farley area.

Speaking outside court, Mr Roper welcomed the verdict. "We are delighted, but more relieved than anything because this has been going on for two years," he said.

"But I do not want to comment further until the details of the sentence are sorted out."

Tracy Burton, head of marketing for Alton Towers, said she hoped a compromise could be found.

She said: "Obviously we are disappointed with the ruling but we need to come back and see where we are with the abatement order. Hopefully, we will get to the point where we can come to a workable solution on the order.

"We've already reduced music levels and tannoy levels. We've always endeavoured to be good neighbours and we will continue to do that."