Global incidence of theme park and amusement ride accidents

<p>This study describes worldwide occurrence of accidents involving amusement rides. The study compiled and</p> <p>classified reports in international media coverage for a one-year period, analysing event type, ride type, op-</p> <p>eration type, and regional location. Media reports provided limited detail and almost certainly omitted some</p> <p>events but remain the only publicly available data on a global scale.</p> <p>Over the year, 182 accident events were reported, from 38 countries, of which 51 events involved a fatality.</p> <p>Mechanical rides and roller coasters were involved in 87 events. Fixed-site rides (amusement and theme parks),</p> <p>mobile rides, and waterparks were involved with a similar number of cases. The most common event type with</p> <p>fixed-site and mobile rides was ride malfunction (63 cases). In waterparks, drowning or near-miss of drowning</p> <p>was most common (27 cases). Just 11 reports involved improper rider action, 12 involved failure of reasonable</p> <p>action, and 11 involved medical conditions or reactions.</p> <p>Occurrence as a proportion of attendance was highest in Latin America, predominantly involving mechanical</p> <p>non-tracked rides; water attractions predominated in North America. Lower prevalence of malfunctions in North</p> <p>America suggests value of professional development for mechanics and inspectors and strong regulation to</p> <p>promote international safety standards.</p>